Chapter 4

*In this story, Aro did not kill his own sister, Didyme. She was killed by a psychopathic vampire.*

Aro POV

She came here to die? Why would a young thing like her want to give her life away like that? She could just ask for immortality if she wished, and we would give it to her. Seeing as she is Marcus's mate. How lucky my brother is, he has been dead to the world ever since his mate, and my sister, died.

I quickly take a good look at Isabella. Her hair falls around her face and neck in tangles, her wide eyes framed by long, dark lashes. Her mouth is full, and has a slight frown to it. I back to her eyes, finding them hollow. Like the life has been sucked out of them. What the Cullen's did to her feel this way angers me. How could anyone make another being, human or not, feel like taking their own life confuses me.

Marcus cuts off my internal rambling, "Why would want to die, Piccolo?" he asks softly. I then notice how close he is to her. I hadn't noticed that he had moved to sit next to Isabella. Heart rate hasn't sped up, so I assume she doesn't mind.

"I have nothing to live for. My dad is dead, my mom can deal with my death. I don't have many friends so, I don't have much to leave behind. Plus, I'm violating your number one rule. I figured that if I came here, then you would kill me. I still do hope you do." she says, her voice full of sorrow.

"Well, I hate to ruin your wish, but we will not kill you." her face falls into one of pure sadness, her eyes cast down. Then she looks up at me, curiosity burning in her eyes.

"I offer the chance for you to kill me, and you refuse. Why?" she asks, her tone questioning.

"Piccolo, you are much more important ant than you think." Marcus says rubbing his thumb over her knuckles before bringing the hand to his lips in a brief kiss.

"How so? Tell me one thing that makes my life important." she demands softly.

"You mean a lot to me." Marcus whispers softly against her knuckles.

MPOV

I could feel the tension in her hand as she took on board what I had just said. I faintly hear Aro state that he has important papers he needs to write. I nod slightly in return, but not enough to tip off my Isabella. My Isabella? When had I started calling her that?

"How am I important to you?" Isabella asks sweetly.

"You're so young to even consider taking your life. Plus I feel something for you, something I never felt in a long time Piccolo." I say, putting our joined hands in my lap.

"What do you feel? Hate, anger, aggression-"

"None of those things, sweet, you make me feel alive again. I was in darkness before you came into my life." I say tenderly.

"How could I make you feel like that? You don't know me, I have blackness in my heart-" she rushes her words out before I cut her off.

"I know I do not know quite as well as I would like to, but I know you will never have blackness anywhere in your soul. You are naturally sweet and kind hearted." I say kindly.

"I'm not. I'm a broken shell of what I used to be." she says so softly I barely catch it, even with my extreme hearing.

"You are wrong." My Isabella tries to cut me off, but I place my free hand over her mouth to stop her, "Now you know I'm right. I know there is goodness in you, and that is what I love about you." I don't make sense of what I said, until her eyes go wide. Did I just say I love something about her?

Suddenly, my sweet Isabella yawns against my hand. I take it away to see a perfect mouth parted over pearly white teeth. Even her mouth is beautiful. I am falling hard for my human mate. If only she knew what she did to me.

"I think you should sleep, sweet. You need your strength for tomorrow. We shall need to introduce you to the guard, so they know that you are now a guest here." I say as I pull back the quilt so my sweet can get under. She does so, looking as if her limbs are way too heavy for her.

As I place the quilt over her, I make a move to get my other hand back, but Isabella holds on tightly.

"Stay please, it's all I ask of you." she asks softly, looking sleepily into my eyes. I nod in return, on the inside I'm jumping for joy. Bathing in the trust she gives to me by allowing me to lay next to her, to protect her, in my mind, as she sleeps. She tugs me down in front of her, and I place my other hand on the curve in between her ribs and hip. She then pleases me more by having closer to me by placing her head on chest.

A few minutes pass, and I am worried by now as she has not fallen the spell of sleep yet. I begin to hum a sweet tune from a classic movie I can't recall the name of, and it seems to ease her a bit. And I hear her heartbeat and breathing become slower and more deep. Finally she is getting the sleep she needs.

I move a little closer to my tiny mate, as I prepare to hold her until she wakes in the morning.