Chapter 8 – Ignorance
Despite the mid-morning hour, the forest around us was still fairly dark as we continued our trek. It wasn't until there was a break in the trees, wide enough to let the sun through, that I finally felt like I could see without much strain.
As we walked into a small clearing, Edward raised his hand to shield his eyes from the brightness, and then he did something I wasn't expecting – he froze.
"What is it? Are you burning?" I asked in a rush, without taking a moment to think before I spoke.
He didn't turn to me with his response, he simply said, "No."
Another twenty seconds of his seemingly frozen stance passed, before it finally occurred to me what was happening. Edward was staring at the sky. He was completely awestruck in the wonder and beauty of the endless brilliant blue and floating white wisps. It was something most people took for granted, but I realized he probably hadn't been able to actually see the sky since his imprisonment. It was a beautiful moment, and the look on his face was a mix between amazement and overwhelming relief, but it only made me furious. Even the worst serial killers on death row had access to a view of the sky. How could anyone treat another living being in that way? It was absolutely sickening.
"Sometimes, during long stretches of isolation, I would close my eyes and wish every last member of my family was dead," he said unexpectedly. I scrunched my brows in confusion, but thankfully I didn't have to voice it. "Death would be far kinder than a life like that," he explained. "The days and nights blended together. Weeks. Years. It was all the same. Now that you've shown me that vision of my mother…and what she has become, I know I was right to wish it."
I hesitantly placed my hand on his shoulder, which seemed to momentarily startle him. "We will get your family out of their cages. I promise," I told him gently.
His eyes closed in what looked like defeat. "This is stupid. My plan is stupid. I'm going to just get us both killed."
"You can't think like that," I told him.
He huffed loudly, and then opened his eyes again. He glanced up at the sky one more time, before continuing his hike back into the cover of the trees.
"Why don't you just tell me the plan. Maybe I can help? Think of something you haven't," I suggested as I hurried to keep up with his pace.
"It's not so much of a plan, more like a vague idea. We need to find my father's buried treasure, and then…"
"Buried treasure?" I interrupted. "Let me guess, he was a pirate before he became a vampire?" I asked facetiously.
"No, he was a pastor," he replied straight faced, clearly not understanding that I was joking.
"A pastor, huh. How did he become a vampire?" I asked, thinking it was a bit ironic for a man of god to become a so-called creature of the night.
"What difference does that make?" he asked evenly.
I shrugged. "I don't know. I'm just curious. You know, trying to make small talk."
"You're talking pretty loud for wanting it to be small," he grumbled.
That was when I realized that his extended captivity likely rendered him lost to certain sayings and figures of speech. I needed to remember to be as blunt and straightforward with him as possible. "No, I mean, I was just trying to make conversation," I explained.
"Conversing is a waste of valuable energy," he replied curtly.
Perhaps vampires just weren't very social by nature, and that was fine, but there were definite things we still needed to discuss.
"Can you at least finish telling me about your plan, or idea, or whatever we are doing? Your father has buried treasure somewhere?" I prompted, trying to get back on topic.
"Yes, on an island off the coast of Brazil. We need to get to it."
"Brazil?" I asked surprised. I had so many questions about how or why vampires would have buried treasure on an island so far away, but getting any less than necessary information out of Edward was proving to be difficult, so I figured it was best to stick to his actual plan for now. "Wow…okay. And then what?"
"We use the money to buy our way into the monster auctions, so we can purchase my family," he said evenly.
"Purchase them? But how will we even get into the auctions? It's not like they're open to the public."
"I used to listen to Emmett speaking to your mother about this…"
"My mother?" I questioned surprised.
"She wanted to help him escape. They discussed it several times. She told him that anyone can get into the tournaments, as long as they have knowledge of the underground supernatural world, and enough money to buy their way in."
I scrunched my brows in confusion. "I went to two fights back at the manor, and got into the auction, without anyone asking me for any money, or a ticket, or to show ID, or anything."
"That is strange, but I doubt we would be so lucky next time. We need to be prepared."
I nodded in agreement. "So, my mom wanted to help set Emmett and you free. How was she planning to do that? She clearly didn't include my dad in her plot."
"No, your father would have never allowed it. She was trying to discreetly make contacts to find someone with enough money to help us. But then your father sold Emmett, and she was killed, so I've been stuck there alone ever since. I was beginning to think I'd never get out, but then you came."
"I only wish I could have freed you sooner."
"You were too young before. Now is the right time."
I nodded. "So, if we have enough money, we can buy your family... but what if they aren't for sale?" I asked slowly as I let it all sink in. "You were never auctioned, and it was just a fluke that Emmett was auctioned. If my dad didn't need the money at the time, he probably wouldn't have done it. I doubt any of these owners will auction off their vampires if they're really rare."
"Then maybe we buy our way in to the matches, and break them out the same way we escaped. We have time to figure out the details. Brazil is a few days from here," he said as he continued to walk.
"At this speed, Brazil is quite a bit more than a few days from here," I informed him. "Do you want to run again to get us there sooner? I suppose I could hop on your back."
He shook his head. "No, I can't maintain that speed very long. It's probably best to take a little longer anyway. If I'm going to blend in with the humans, I'll need time to acclimate."
"Do you think you can?" I asked doubtful. "I mean, you definitely don't look like any human I've ever seen. The way you walk and talk, and the glowing of your eyes. You don't even know what a handshake is. Maybe the general public won't be able to totally comprehend what you really are, but how are you going to fool anyone at those tournaments?"
He shrugged. "I'm not really sure on all the details just yet. I never tried to integrate with humans before, but I know it's possible since my father used to do it. And I do have abilities he didn't, so perhaps, with your help, and some physical adjustments, I'll blend in enough."
I wasn't exactly sure what he meant by physical adjustments, but I knew one thing for sure - "You, going into those matches, is a huge risk. You should just let me go in alone. If it's possible to buy any members of your family, I'll do it."
He shook his head no. "I have to be there with you. If anything goes wrong, I need to make sure you don't get hurt. I promised your mother I would always protect you, and I can't do that if I'm sitting outside while you're taking all the risks."
"But if they catch you…"
"They won't," he said confidently. "If we do this right, they won't even suspect anything."
"You don't think they will be on the lookout for us at all of those events?"
"No, I think they'd assume we would stay as far away as possible. As long as we have the money, and act like one of them, we should go unnoticed."
"If money is the only determining factor, then once we have the treasure, I should be able to handle their purchases myself," I argued.
"It's not the only factor. Best case scenario, we buy them. Worst case is we're forced to break them out, and you can't do that without me. Besides me, the only vampire you have ever been around is Emmett, and there were always electrified bars between you and him. Vampires are highly intelligent, but they also go on instincts, and you are their natural food. Plus, my family members have been locked up for a long time, and probably not treated as well as Emmett was when your mother was alive. They could be hostile, and lack all self-control. I don't want them attacking you. I have to be there."
"Okay," I conceded, realizing he was right. "But how will we even know where the next tournament will be held?"
He grimaced. "I'm not sure. We need to try to find someone else who has knowledge of such things. Somehow force them to give us the information we need. My mother was the only one at this last tournament, which means the owners of the rest of my family members must live further away."
"But my dad said people travel from all over the world to attend the tournaments, so why wouldn't their owners have brought them?" I asked confused.
"Of all the tournaments I've fought in, this was the first time anyone from my family has been there. Some owners only attend the matches closer to their homes. The furthest your father ever took me was Central America, opting to forgo all the events any further away. He's not unique in that stance."
"Edward… are you sure your dad and sister are still alive?" I murmured carefully.
"No, and even if they are, it's possible we may never get to them, but I have to try," he replied quietly.
"I get that. If they're out there, we will free them," I said determinedly. "So, we need to find out where the next tournament is, and just hope their owners decide to attend," I concluded. "My dad said they happen quarterly, so we only have three months to get your father's treasure, and figure out all the rest."
"There are also smaller matches worldwide that occur more frequently than the main tournaments. If we can just learn who owns my father and sister, we can save ourselves some time and only attend those matches."
"But what about your mother?" I asked concerned. "We know where she is right now. If we wait until her owner leaves Swan Manor with her, it may be difficult to locate her again."
"That's a risk we have to take. They're looking for us back there right now. I'm hoping if we can get to my father, he can figure out a way to save her."
"So… with this whole Operation, Save the Cullens, how many vampires are we trying to rescue exactly?" I asked hesitantly. I knew buying vampires at auction was going to be more than expensive, I only hoped there was enough treasure to buy all of them.
"My family is just my parents, and my sister," he replied.
"What about Emmett?"
"I only met Emmett after I was sold to your great-grandfather. But, if it's possible to free him too, I'm definitely going to."
"Okay, so hopefully there is enough treasure to buy four vampires."
"There should be. My father had a lot of money. Like I said before, if we can just get to him, he will figure out the rest."
We were both quiet as we walked and considered everything that involved with the plan, but suddenly I was hit with an amazing realization. "My god, I'm such an idiot!" I shouted as I dug through my handbag.
"You are not the most intelligent creature I've come across, but I wouldn't classify you as an idiot," Edward said, sounding as if he was attempting to be encouraging.
I huffed. "No, I don't mean I'm actually an idiot…"
"Then why did you call yourself one?" he asked perplexed.
"It's just something people say sometimes, when they do something unintentionally. I just can't believe this slipped my mind since it's kind of important and could make a huge difference for us. Look what I have," I told him while holding out the flash drive I brought from my father's office computer. Edward clearly didn't know what it was, so I explained. "I got this from my dad's office. There could be information on the tournaments; maybe even a list of who the owners are, and what monsters they possess. This could really help us!" I said excitedly.
"This is a book?" he asked, tentatively taking the small flash drive out of my hands so he could examine it.
I giggled. "No, it stores information from computers. But we need another computer, or some type of compatible device, to read it."
"A computer, huh? Your mother told me about those once. She was going to try to get me one to play on, but she was never able to. From her description, they seemed a bit complex."
"Well, they can be complex, but most aren't too bad. We just need to get to a library, or somewhere else that has public computers, and I should be able to pull up the information."
"Okay, so we need to get to a town," he understood. "I'm not sure I'm ready to be around so many humans just yet. Do human settlements have private locations we can go to spend a few days? It may be best if I lie low while you visit the library, at least for a while."
"Well, I have some cash that I also took from my dad's desk. I doubt it will be enough to get us all the way to Brazil, but it will definitely get us a few nights in a motel. Do you think we are far enough that we won't be found yet?"
"We should keep going south in these woods for another day before we take a chance being seen by humans of any kind."
I nodded wearily. "Another full day of hiking. I'm going to need some food and water here soon."
"Humans can go three weeks without food," he disagreed with my statement. "And there are usually running creeks throughout forests; we will stop for a drink once we find one."
I furrowed my brows. "So, you know humans can go three weeks without eating, but you don't know what a handshake is?" I questioned, thinking his mix of knowledge and ignorance was just as fascinating as it was frustrating.
"My freedom in the world before imprisonment was brief," he vaguely explained.
I knew he didn't like casual conversing, but with the dreadfully long day and night of trekking ahead of us, I was desperate to get my mind off of it, so I decided to push my luck.
"What do you remember from the world before you were captured?" I asked carefully. "I may need to teach you some things, in order for you to even attempt to blend in when we make it to a town," I added, hoping to use my words in a way that he might think it was important information to share, rather than just quenching my curiosity.
He seemed to consider my question, and just when I thought he was going to dismiss it, he began telling me his story.
"The world wasn't safe for us, so we were always moving, always traveling around to try to avoid capture. We went to a great many places, but my parents kept me hidden as much as possible. They worried that I would never be accepted in the regular world, or the super natural world, so they never really let me talk to people. The first real conversation I had with anyone outside my family, was when I was brought to Swan Manor, and thrown into the pit with Emmett."
"You were thrown into a pit with Emmett?" I asked horrified.
"Your great-grandfather ran things differently than your parents. There were only four or five cells in the dungeon back then, and he had the various creatures segregated into those cells. The vampires were kept together in one cell, all the werewolves in another, and so on. Once a week, Mister Swan would take all of fighters, regardless of their species or temperament, to the arena where he would tell them to train. We all called it the pit, because at the time, it was basically an electrified hole in the ground, surrounded by bleachers. The caged ring didn't come until about thirty years ago. My first day at Swan Manor just happened to be a pit training day, so without any fighting skills, or even knowledge of what the hell was going on, I was basically thrown into the pit. Mister Swan just assumed that I'd learn to defend myself quickly, or I would die and not have to waste his time."
"Sink or swim," I said horrified by the thought.
Edward shook his head. "The pit had no water."
I thought about explaining the phrase to him, but I knew it would just get us off topic, and I really wanted to hear the rest of his story.
"How did you survive?" I asked quickly, dismissing his water comment.
"Emmett protected me. He had no reason to, we had yet to meet prior to that, but he just did. There were two other male vampires owned by the Swans back then, so the four of us shared the same cell, but Emmett was the only one who showed any interest in me. He took it upon himself to mentor me, and tried to teach me everything he thought I would need to know. My parents had taught me all the basics like reading, math, geography, and some history, but Emmett taught me to fight."
"So, everything you know is what your parents taught you before, and what Emmett taught you in the dungeon? You weren't socialized with anyone else?"
"The other two vampires in our cell never spoke to me or each other, and they were auctioned off not too long after I arrived there. Emmett said they were both pussies – whatever that means. So, it was just the two of us for a long time. The only other voices I'd hear, were occasional screams from other monsters in different cells, people talking shit during training, and the guards yelling at Emmett when it was his turn to fight. But then, some years later, your mother came to the manor, and she would spend hours talking to me. She also brought me books, but most of them were poetry and classic novels. I don't recall anything about shaking hands in any of them; that seems strange to me. But I did read something about human capabilities once. Humans can only go three weeks without food, three days without water, three minutes without air, and three seconds without sex."
If I had anything in my mouth, I would have spit it out uncontrollably. "Three seconds without sex?" I echoed with a mix of horror and humor.
He shrugged. "That's what I read."
"Wait, you don't even know what sex is, do you?" I asked. "Because, it's not possible for a human to have that much sex. Maybe some people think about sex that often, but they certainly aren't actually having sex every three seconds. Where did you read that?"
"There was an article in a paper book I skimmed through once. It said men need it more. It didn't explain what it was, but Emmett did mention sex several times over the years."
"What did he say about it?" I asked, way more amused than I probably should have been.
"He made it sound terrible. He said when he was human, he would do sex and make women scream."
I giggled. "I'll have to explain it to you one day…but not right now. I wonder if vampires have sex," I mused.
"I doubt it. My father never made my mother scream," he said seriously.
My giggle turned into a fit of laughter. I honestly felt like a clueless ten-year-old, talking about things I shouldn't be.
"Why are you crying?" he asked disturbed.
"I'm not, I'm laughing."
"What is laughing?" he asked, stunning me into abrupt silence.
"You don't know what laughing is?"
"Should I? Must be another human thing."
"Even if it's not common for vampires to laugh, shouldn't you at least remember what it is from your time as a human?"
He shook his head no, but just as I was about to question him more on his human life, he put his hand up to hush me as he seemed to be listening to something in the distance.
I stilled and held my breath, and sure enough, I heard the faint sound of crunching foliage from somewhere amongst the trees. Someone, or something, was definitely out there.
I had no way of knowing what it was, but Edward clearly did. He darted away, only to return less than a minute later, but he didn't return empty handed.
"Holy shit!" I screeched.
"Isn't it amazing!" he said with the more excitement than I thought he was capable of. His eyes were so lit with wonderment, that I probably would have been just as excited if I wasn't utterly disturbed. In his hands, were the biggest set of antlers I had ever seen. The massive buck still attached to said antlers, looked more than a little pissed. "It's a moose! I've never seen one alive before."
I forced out a smile. "Actually, I'm pretty sure it's an elk. What are you going to do with it?" I asked, having a hard time keeping my voice steady as the animal huffed, and attempted to kick his way free from Edward's steel grip.
"Eat it. You said you were hungry," he replied, clearly confused by my befuddlement. "I've never killed my own food before, but I've killed plenty of other creatures. Shouldn't be difficult to find the meat," he said before swiftly snapping the animal's neck with ease.
I winced, then had to shake away my willies. My dad had brought home many bucks and bulls from his hunting trips over the years, but seeing one actually killed right in front of me was a little shocking. Still, I had eaten the meat many times, so why should this be any different?
"How are we going to skin it…"
I let my words trail off as Edward tore a chunk out of the carcass with his bare hands, and automatically took a bite out of the bloody flesh. When he noticed me just standing there gawking at him, he misconstrued my reaction and tore out another gory chunk to hand to me.
"Um…"
He looked like a monstrous villain from some horror film, then again, I shouldn't have really been surprised. As I watched his face, dripping with red, I found myself only really questioning one thing. "So, vampires actually eat?"
"I do. It's really good when it's still warm and bloody. They usually only gave me butchered pigs or cow thighs, but I did get some venison once. It wasn't anything close to this good though. Why aren't you eating?"
"Oh… well, humans usually eat their meat cleaned and cooked."
"Cooked? Like over a fire? Why?"
"That's just what humans do. We cook our meat to make sure all the bacteria and germs are gone. The rawest thing I've ever eaten was medium well steak. I won't even touch sushi."
"I have no idea what half of the words you just said mean, but we can build a fire if you would like. I saw an acquaintance of my father's do it once. He just rubbed two sticks together like this."
I had seen people unsuccessfully attempt to start a fire with sticks before on TV, and I knew some of my friends even attempted it while camping with no prevail, so I didn't have much hope. However, with his vampire super speed, Edward had flames quickly, and he was just as surprised as I was.
"I can't believe that actually worked."
"Me either," I agreed.
We worked together to build the fire, and then I cringed while he tore a chunk out of the bull elk so I could roast it.
Edward was already done eating before my meat was cooked, which was awkward. He literally stood there and stared at me, without blinking, for the fifteen minutes or so it took for me to finish. The only thing worse than his piercing stare, was the fact that his face and shirt were still stained red from the elk blood. It had to be the single most uncomfortable meal I ever had.
I couldn't eat fast enough, just to get it over with, and then we were on our way again. Another full day of hiking in the woods, followed by what would certainly be another long restless night. Hopefully the following day would bring us to some inconspicuous civilized shelter. Then again, staying in a motel with a vampire may just prove even more troublesome….
