Chapter Six

Bella

I was sitting in the dark when I heard something, a quiet rustle and looked over to the door just in time to see a piece of paper appear from the outside. I tensed, was this some kind of trick to lure me outside? I was so scared that sleep had eluded me altogether and I knew I wouldn't be able to go much further before I fell asleep at the wheel but I was too scared to stop running. I crept over and picked it up hearing the click as the door next to mine shut softly, they were that close? No wonder I couldn't sleep!

I opened it but I didn't recognise the writing. If I were to believe what I read then Jasper and Emmett were waiting for me next door. Did they really think I was that stupid? If anyone were to come for me it would be Edward and he'd told me what he thought of me very clearly before he left. No, this was the evil Alice had spoken of and I wasn't ready to give in, not just yet.

I turned the shower on full and leaving everything behind but my purse I eased the bathroom window open and slithered out making for the trees on the far side of the parking lot. Once I made the shelter of them I turned to make sure I wasn't being followed then toyed with the idea of running but I knew I couldn't outrun a vampire and in the dark, I'd probably break a leg.

There was a truck filling up at the service station which gave me an idea, I could maybe hitch a ride with the driver. I started forward only to freeze as the door next to mine opened and two figures emerged. At first, I thought they were Volturi, the huge one looked like Felix but then a truck's headlights washed over their faces and I almost cried with relief as I recognised Jasper and Emmett, just as the note had said.

I could see the way they were looking that they expected me to have tried to hitch a ride in the truck that was about to pull away so I ran out of the trees and called to them. It was quite a distance and with the road noise another human wouldn't have heard but both heads whipped around and seeing me running towards them both broke into smiles.

In seconds I found myself in Emmett's arms and feeling safe again at last while Jasper looked at me, his eyes sparkling with amusement.

"You led us a merry chase, Bella. How did you know you were in danger when we only just found out?"

"Alice, I saw Alice, but I think something happened to her. She told me there was evil in charge of your world and that I should run and hide. She knew, though, she knew you'd find me, she told me you would."

Jasper

I didn't understand, why would Alice risk her life to warn Bella? They had been friends yes but I was under the impression Alice had kept away since she left us and if she had known Bella was in danger why hadn't she told us? We could have come for Bella and she could have then hidden. She must have known she was being hunted, her gift alone made her valuable to the Romanians. When Emmett finally let Bella go she grabbed my hands and I felt a tingling sensation, like an electric shock.

"What's going on Jasper? I've been so scared yet I don't know why everything seems to have changed."

Keeping one hand in mine I led her back to her room and put her bag on the bed.

"You pack while I talk. Em, let the others know we have Bella and arrange a flight back."

He nodded and wandered outside while I explained to Bella what had happened.

"The Volturi were defeated? But how? They had all the gifts, Alec could have stopped an army."

"They knew that they've been planning this for a long time. They knew surprise was their only hope and it worked, Alec didn't get warning enough to build up his gift and Jane was overwhelmed by numbers as far as we can tell. The important thing is that the Romanians are now in control and they are acting fast to stop any possible rebellions. There's a list going around, a list of names with rewards posted at the side of each. The Romanians want anyone who could be a threat either on their side or dead."

"Are the Volturi all dead?"

"No, some escaped, Aro, Caius, and Marcus, some of the guard and Aro's wife although I don't think Caius will survive with Athenadora dead. They are holed up in Greece, their spiritual home, and I wouldn't mind betting it has plenty of defences. They know the Romanians will be keen to finish them off."

Once she finished packing I led her over to our car,

"What about mine? I can't just leave it here. I have to tell Renee something or she'll have the police out looking for me and what about Charlie?"

"I'll arrange something but please Bella, we need to leave now."

Emmett came back in,

"More bad news Jazz. The Romanians have launched an attack on the Fraternidad, Antonio is dead along with most of the others."

"Figures, they mean business this time and they've learned from their mistakes. It's going to be a bloodbath and not just for our kind."

"The Romanians are human hunters you mean?"

"More than that Bella, Stefan and Vladimir have no thought for humans, they see them as cattle to be slaughtered as necessary and they won't worry about keeping to the shadows."

Bella went very quiet, the news had shocked her and I thought she understood this could mean the end for mankind as she knew it. The Romanians would enslave them eventually if we didn't stop them. She turned to me solemn beneath the fear,

"Are you going to fight to put the Volturi back in power?"

"Yes, they may not be whiter than white but their ways worked, they allowed us all to live in comparative peace."

I hadn't realised I was still holding her hand and dropped it self-consciously to take the driver's seat.

Emmett followed us in Bella's car to the airport leaving it in the long term car parking.

"No one is going to question it for some time. I paid for three months, told the guy I was trekking across Europe. I think he thought I was mad but the extra I handed him soon stopped any questions. Carlisle rang while we were driving, he thinks a flight is too dangerous, Bella could be traced and the airport is a bottleneck. He said to drive and meet him where we camped two summers ago."

So, Carlisle feared his communications might be overheard, the campsite was in Baton Rouge which gave us easy access to the swamps of Mississippi if we were discovered.

However, it was quite a drive from Raleigh North Carolina to Baton Rouge with plenty of opportunities to try an ambush. We decided the best thing would be for Emmett to drive as he was less well known than me and Bella would stay out of sight in the back behind tinted windows.

Bella was silent for a while thinking about what I had said I assumed. She didn't appear to be as scared any longer and that made me feel better, she trusted us despite what we had done to her in the past.

"I didn't believe your note when I read it was you and Emmett who had come for me. Crazy as it may seem I thought if anyone came to keep me safe it would be Edward. I guess I should have known better."

The thought that Bella was still thinking of Edward hurt me in a way I didn't really understand but then she continued,

"Actually, I'm glad he didn't because I would probably have thrown something at him. That bastard…"

Emmett and I exchanged a grin at this, it seemed perhaps Edward wasn't going to find his ex-girlfriend quite as pleased to see him as he hoped.

"He did want to come but we decided it was too dangerous."

She stared at Emmett as if he just spoken in Japanese,

"He wanted to? After everything he said to me? Then I guess he's as crazy as he is stupid."

Emmett wriggled in his seat before speaking again and I knew he felt uncomfortable at the subject he was about to bring up but felt it had to be said.

"Bella, I want to apologise for the way we left you, that must have hurt."

"It did but I got over it, besides it didn't hurt nearly as much as the things Edward said before you left."

We exchanged another look, what exactly had Edward said to her?

"We did wonder if you would come with us actually, after all, that happened."

She looked at the back of Emmett's head as she answered me,

"I guess when you're in danger you'll grab anything that holds out hope of safety."

I winced, that had hurt, and she must have noticed because she turned to look at me then.

"Sorry, that was unfair. I don't hold anyone responsible for your leaving except myself. It's just the way you went that hurt. You think I blame you for Edward leaving me don't you? I hadn't thought of that, but you're wrong. I know the truth, I know you weren't going to attack me and I'm amazed Edward misinterpreted your actions so badly. Or did what happened fall neatly in with his plan?"

"What plan?"

"He didn't tell you why he left me? He must have said something but by the look of it obviously not the truth."

As we listened in growing horror and outrage Bella told us what Edward had said to her before he left and she knew it word for word, that's how much it had hurt her. His words were branded in her memory and still hurt, even after all this time.