Finding Heaven

Disclaimer: I do not own 'Twilight' or 'Midnight Sun'. Direct passages from 'Midnight Sun' are marked at the end with a ^ symbol


~Chapter 3 – Secret Chambers~

EPOV

"Hey, aren't you the tour guide guy?" Her breath washed over me sending a fresh wave of burning fire down my throat. I immediately stopped breathing. I almost forgot my reason for abstaining from her, when something struck me as odd…silence.

Though we were located in an obscure location that would be perfect for my killing her, it was incongruously silent. I could still hear the inner ramblings of the unvoiced readers nearby, but either this girl was thoughtless, or there was something very peculiar about her. She was a complete enigma and that was something I had never experienced before. Even while I was human, I always had an acute ability to read people, of course I became a very literal version of that after my transformation, but never had I been completely lost.

"I'm sorry; you probably don't speak a word of English, do you?" she asked, not expecting an answer. "And I'm stupidly traveling alone without speaking any of the native language. I mean you would think that I would at least have a language translation dictionary, or something. I guess its better that I didn't go to Volterra with your group, I've been having a horrible stomach ache all day, and I'd probably end up getting motion sickness and stuck in the bus bathroom the whole time." She looked at me as if she was waiting for a response, but I didn't need to read her mind to know that she legitimately thought I didn't understand her, regardless of her one sided conversation with me. I was positive that if she thought I did understand, she'd never talk about her need of a bathroom to me.

"Well, I'm just wasting both of our time, aren't I?" She collected her things and got up to leave, when she stopped and turned back to me. "Wait a minute, you were speaking English to the tourists, you even told me that the bus was full." She looked upset, which was entirely fascinating to me. I was a complete stranger to her, but instead of being embarrassed and walking away, she didn't have a problem expressing what she was feeling in that moment. I was actually slightly concerned that she'd up and punch me the way she did to the cupid guy, which would only result in her hand being broken.

But even more than her obvious displeased feelings towards me, it was her complete lack of fear which struck me. Most humans had an innate trepidation of vampires, even if they consciously didn't know it, but this girl didn't seem to have any instinct to flee from me whatsoever. Heidi and I were used as 'fisherman' because we were both physically attractive to humans, but that didn't mean that they felt completely comfortable with us the way that this girl seemed to feel.

"Well?" She waited for me to respond, and for some unknown reason, I actually responded.

"Uh, little English" I said in my heavy Italian accent.

She narrowed her eyes at me as if she could see right through me, or almost as if she was the mind reader and she heard my hidden truth. Of course, if she really did know my truth, she'd run away screaming in sheer terror.

"So, you were going to just sit there and let me make a fool of myself by pretending to not understand me?"

"No, I'm sorry, I did not fully understand everything," I said, maintaining my accent.

She bit her bottom lip and a major part of me was hoping that she'd draw blood so I could give myself the excuse to kill her.

"So will there be any more tours to Volterra today?" she asked.

"No" I said a little too quickly. It wasn't that I was worried about her safety in Volterra, it was just the simple fact that if she were to become anyone's meal, it would be mine. The last thing I wanted to do was fight another vampire for my meal like a couple wild animals.

"How about tomorrow?" she asked. I was beginning to think that resisting her blood was stupid, and I should just give in to it before someone has a chance to drink her before me. She was obviously doomed to die. I wondered if she smelled more appealing than most to other vampires as well. She was my singer, there was no doubt about that, but I was sure that her blood must be more potent regardless.

"We're booked through the weekend."

"Oh, well that's too bad. I read a lot about Volterra and I'd love to see it before I have to go home."

"You are American, no?" I was completely frustrated with her closed mind, that I started asking mundane questions just to try to unlock the secrets that her mind was surely keeping.

"Yeah, I'm from Phoenix. I'm actually here for the summer to visit my grandmother…and you probably don't care to hear about my life," she said with a humorless laugh.

"I should probably be going" I said while using the last bit of my stored oxygen. It was a very strange encounter. I came back to Florence for the sole reason to drink her blood and hers alone, but as I walked away from her, I felt a strange sense of relief that her heart was still beating.

I never cared for a human before, and I certainly didn't care for her either, but it I knew without a doubt that her blood was the equivalent to vampire heroin. One hit and I'd be hooked without the option to indulge myself again. I decided to not return to Florence while she was in Italy.

Over the next couple of weeks, I tried to keep the strange girl's quiet mind and intoxicating aroma, out of my mind. But try as I may, I was tragically unsuccessful. She started consuming my every thought, and the craving that I was counting on dissipating, only grew. The majority of my time was spent trying to consider which was worse, the cravings itself, or the indulgence only to be left unsatisfied for the rest of eternity. Surely the craving had to decrease. I could think through it, I was strong enough for that. I prided myself, as well as my species, as if we were demigods, and if that were the case, then there was no way that her enticement would overcome me. I only had to make it a few decades then hopefully the temptation would be dead, and my choice would be removed from me. A few decades of suffering was better than an eternity of it, right?

I exited a bar ally, where I had just drank two burly men who had been in a drunken fight, and I sluggishly walked back to the compound. Vampires never really felt sluggish from being overfull, but if we did, then that's how I would have felt. I was overdrinking a lot lately, but it did nothing for my cravings except further prove my point that I couldn't go on with mediocre blood after drinking the girl's luscious deliciousness.

"Right this way people, follow me" I heard Heidi say. She was just returning with a group of ten fish, and she winked at me as our eyes met. But then that familiar song started resounding in my airway. It was only with the rush of the breeze that I noticed my singer amongst the fish that Heidi was about to feed to the leaders.

I didn't even think, I just reacted. I ran over to Heidi's group at human speed, and approached my singer. "Um, scusami." My singer stopped and looked surprised to see me, Heidi stopped as well and looked…annoyed.

What the hell are you doing Edward! – Heidi practically yelled at me in her mind. I, of course, ignored her.

"It's you again. We seem to keep running into each other" my singer said. He cheeks turned the most delicious shade of pink from the shock of my repeat appearance in her life.

"Si. Uh, may I have a word with you for just a minuto, per favore?" I asked mixing English with Italian words that she would probably understand. She looked forward to the group that Heidi was aggravatingly escorting forward without her, and she nodded reluctantly.

"I really don't want to miss this tour, though." Oh how wrong she was.

"This tour group you found yourself in, is just awful, trust me."

"Really?" She seemed surprised by my comment. "They were highly recommended in the news paper."

Right, a newspaper that was run by vampires.

"Look, if you really want to see the city, let me show you around."

"Uh, why would you do that? I mean I don't mean to be rude or anything, but we only just met once a few weeks ago, so why spend your time off giving me a private tour?"

"Well, I feel…unhappy about the fact that we were full when you wanted the tour before. It would be a disservice of me to allow you to be taken advantage of by this terrible tour guide who has been showing you around." I smiled reassuringly, without showing too much of my teeth.

"You know, for someone who only speaks 'little English', you sure do know a lot of words." She crossed her arms and stared accusingly.

I couldn't help but smile wider at her, but she didn't become alarmed the way most humans would do unconsciously from the sight of a vampire's exposed teeth.

"Ok, you got me." I said in my natural American accented English.

"Oh, my god. You're not even Italian, are you?" She smiled despite her annoyance with my deceit.

"I'm originally from Chicago, but I've lived here for a long time now," I said guiltily.

"Wow, do you use the Italian ruse to pick up on chicks? I bet the dashing foreigner thing would work better in the States, as oppose to in the country you were pretending to be from."

"I find that people would rather take tours from natives, rather than a Chicagoan immigrant."

"Ah, I see. So it's just a business decision then?" she smirked, but started walking away from the compound with me right behind her.

"So what do you want to see first?"

"How about the Pinacoteca?"

"Oh, you're a fan of fourteenth century palaces and fine art?"

"Of course."

I turned my head away from her for a minute, because I was out of my reserved air supply and I needed some fresh air untainted by her alluring scent.

"Are you Ok?" she asked, concerned by my obviously painful breath.

"Yeah, just allergies," I said and faked a cough.

"I'm Bella, by the way" she introduced herself. If she would have told me her name was Bella when we first ran into each other, I would have thought her name was completely unsuited for her. I only saw her as physically average looking at best, so a name meaning beauty was off, but the more time I spent with her, the more attractive she appeared. Upon closer inspection, I realized that she was actually rather pretty… in an unusual way. Better than being beautiful, her face was interesting. Not quite symmetrical –her narrow chin out of balance with her wide cheekbones; extreme in the coloring- the light and dark contrast of her skin and her hair; and then there were the eyes, brimming over with silent secrets….^

Eyes that were suddenly boring into mine.^

"And your name is?"

I didn't realize that I not only didn't respond to her introduction, but I was also staring at her. I just wasn't used to not being able to access someone's mind, and I recognized then how I relied on that extra sense far too much. It was like a crutch, and without it I was stumbling through my day.

"Uh, Edward" I said, but it came out almost sounding like a question. I never told humans my name, and if for some reason a name was needed, then I usually just made one up. What was it about this girl that I just couldn't seem to hold myself together.

"Are you sure about that, do you want to think about it for a while first?" she asked with a smirk.

"No, I mean yes, my name is Edward Masen."

"Well, Edward Masen, I'm glad I met you."

Oh, if she only knew.

I gave her a tour of the city, and every stop we made completely fascinated her, and the more fascinated she was in something, the more fascinated in became with her. I had never spent so much time with a human before, and I had never been so interested in anything one had to say. I attributed my captivation to the fact that her mind was blocked from me, but either way, being in her presence was almost peaceful in a way.

"So, when are you going to take me to Marcus's secret chambers?" She asked suddenly.

"His secret chambers?" I was completely shocked. How the hell did she know about Marcus, little alone his secret chambers?

"Yeah, St. Marcus's secret chambers. That's where the girl running the tour group I was in before was about to take us, when you dragged me away."

Heidi was such an idiot.

"Uh, that's not a real place" I lied.

"Then where was the tour guide taking the group then?" She asked confused.

"She wasn't really a tour guide, she was taking those people to be eaten by the monsters that lurk just below the city." I said in a joking tone, knowing that the truth was far more unbelievable than any lie I could come up with.

I expected her to laugh and dismiss my comment, but she didn't, and an alarming expression was plastered on her face instead.

"Um, that was a joke," I said lightly. Perhaps I was more of an idiot that Heidi.

"Oh, right," she said and her voice trembled.

"What's wrong?" I asked concerned by her sudden mood change.

"Nuh, nothing." She said stumbling over her words. Over the few hours I spent with her, I learned a few things. She was outgoing and confident, and though she was a bit of a klutz, she made no apologies for it. She seemed to be the type who was inquisitive and up for anything, but suddenly all that washed away and she became scared and withdrawn. What the hell happened?

"So, do you need me to give you a lift back to Florence?"

"No, I'm staying here for a couple days."

That wasn't a good idea. It was a pure miracle that I hadn't killed her all day, but knowing she was sleeping in the same city, might pull me over the edge.

"Really? What about your grandmother?"

"Uh, she's Ok with it. I'm eighteen anyway, so it's not like I need a chaperone." Her voice was almost detached in a way, which was completely baffling.

I walked her to the hotel she was staying in, and though I successfully fought temptation all day, I was finding it extremely difficult to allow her out of my sight. I still didn't care about her life, but I started to almost get a territorial feeling towards her. Like a wild animal to a scrap of meat. She was in my city, which was full of vampires who wouldn't hesitate to take her for themselves. But she was mine, and though I didn't drink her that day, she still belonged to me and I'd kill any who tried to get her away from me.

I left her alone for the evening knowing that no vampires in the city would take a meal from their bed, and went back to the compound, or as Heidi called it to her fish, 'Marcus's secret chambers'. I went to my room to read, but I just couldn't escape the craving I had for the girl. I got up to leave and as I walked, I contemplated my feelings. Was I craving her blood, or her company more? At that moment, it was dead even.

Still, she was human, and I wouldn't care about killing her if her blood wasn't so addicting, but she was also a puzzle that I was trying to figure out. No one surprised me anymore, not the minds of humans or vampires. I realized that my eternity had become stagnant and dull, but then this girl showed up and completely threw me for a loop.

I walked down the halls of the compound and listened for anyone who planned on double crossing Aro, which I did every few weeks or so. I used to have to 'listen' more frequently, but over the past few decades, all the vampires around feared my extra sense too much to ever consider double crossing him even for a moment. It was utterly boring. I missed the days when vampires feebly conspired against the three leaders, because it was always so much fun to catch them in the act, and to see the looks on their faces knowing they had been caught. It was even better when Aro let me be the one to behead them, it was always a satisfying experience.

Even though vampires didn't sleep, they would often retreat to their private chambers at night, to either be with their mate, or just have alone time to read or whatnot. I usually did the same, but I was restless and couldn't concentrate on reading. I walked out of the compound, and immediately smelled her.

She was hanging around the east entrance, and looked to be trying to find a way inside.

"Bella?"

"Edward, what are you doing here?" She asked startled.

"I'd ask you the same question."

"Oh, I was just looking for something I dropped earlier." Her lies weren't concealed efficiently.

"This late at night?" I challenged her.

"Why are you here?" She asked narrowing her eyes at me.

There was movement adjacent to us, and though she didn't hear it, I knew someone was coming. I grabbed her arm and pulled her quickly into the shadows, not that shadows could hide us from vampires. It was Chelsea, and her mind was concentrating on her task that Aro sent her out to do, so she didn't even notice us. But even if she had, it would have just looked like I was about to drink, not actually having a conversation with the girl.

"What just happened?" The girl asked confused. I was actually surprised that I didn't hurt her from the force I used to pull her away. I must have been more gentle than I thought.

"I just didn't want anyone to see us here, it's not exactly open to the public after hours."

We walked towards the main street and I could actually taste her uneasiness on the back of my tongue. It radiated off of her in waves, and it was obvious she was scared of something.

"Bella, please just tell me the truth; what were you doing there?"

"It's complicated."

"I think I can keep up," I said with conviction, trying to earn her trust.

She shook her head. "You wouldn't believe me even if I told you."

"Try me."

"How long have you lived in this city, Edward?"

"Ten years" I lied without hesitation.

"And in those ten years, have you ever noticed anything strange, or maybe have you known someone who went missing?"

"No. Why do you ask?"

She took a deep breath. "My mother was a science fiction novelist, who came here two years ago to research a story idea. After a few weeks of being here, she called me in a frantic and told me that she loved me, then her phone went silent. I got a letter a couple days later that was completely insane, but the more time that passed, the more I started to believe it."

"What did the letter say?"

"She said that the legends were true, that vampires were real and Volterra was the vampire capital of the world. When she didn't come home and she never contacted me again, I started doing some research. There are many claims of people who think they know something, but even more than that, there are so many tourists who have gone missing after coming here."

I stared at her completely at a loss. I knew that there were the sci-fi believers out there, and that they would come with all their theories, but the idea of this girl's mother being one of them was insanely ironic.

"So you think that she uncovered some supernatural truth, and she's being held hostage somewhere in Marcus's secret chambers?" I all but laughed at her.

"I honestly don't think she's alive anymore. If there are real vampires in this city, and they knew she knew, then I'm sure they would have killed her. I accepted that before I came here, but I just have to know." She said sounding detached.

"And what were you hoping to accomplish by coming here and learning the truth? Did you think that you were just going to walk into a vampire lair demanding answers, and then you'd be able to leave afterwards with your life?"

"I just couldn't sit back and pretend that her letter doesn't exist."

Again, the girl surprised me. She spoke with such determination and heart ache, yet in Florence, she seemed like a happy, strong minded, ordinary girl. She was frustratingly bewildering, and she had no idea how close to the truth she actually was. Of course, if she dug any further, I would have to kill her anyway. She was right about her mother, if she did know the truth, and a vampire knew that she knew, she would indeed be terminated.

If I hadn't been so distracted by my internal contemplations, I would have reacted much faster. If I hadn't been holding my breath the majority of the time, I would have smelled it coming, and if I wasn't listening so intently to the silence of her mind, I would have heard the wheels screeching. I was so fixated on the complexity of this fragile insignificant human, that I used the majority of my vast mind to focus on her, and I irresponsibly left no room to be aware of my surroundings. The van shouldn't have been driving down that backstreet at that hour of the night, but it came barreling towards us regardless. She didn't see it either, until it was too late. She stiffened and sucked in a hard breath, right before the moment of impact.

The loud torturous sound of distorting metal filled the night. I could smell the blood immediately, but I was strangely relieved that it wasn't the blood of my singer. The human driving the van was already dead, killed on impact, and I could feel the heat from his blood dissipating as it was no longer being pumped by his heart.

I turned my head slowly towards the girl who's body had been shielded by my own, and looked at her for her reaction.

Her heart was racing, and sweat had begun to bead on her temples. She didn't speak at first, she just stared at me widely with her oddly deep chocolate brown eyes. If I ever needed to read her thoughts, it was in that moment.

"You…you…"

I couldn't allow her say it, I couldn't even let her consider it, and so I ended it instantly. I grabbed her neck, and like a switch, I turned her off.


Please Review. *Spoiler/preview, Bella is not dead, but she will no longer have her freedom either. Darkward and his pet Bella up next.