Chapter 10 – Him!

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A/N This chapter has two PoVs – I tried differently, but it works better this way.

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(Edward)

I couldn't believe it, she was now almost all outside the window. Bella was going to fall down… She'd asked me a question just for distraction, and she was fast.

But I was faster.

The moment she started dropping. I was on her, grasping her hard and keeping her upright. In this way I touched ground with my feet, the shock easily absorbed, but she never did. She was safe in my arms. There were two deep imprints on the gravel, but I was unscathed, obviously, and so was she, albeit she had fainted.

There was no time to reflect on what she had done to escape me. I scanned my surroundings. Her small rucksack was also on the ground, and so was her cell phone. Ruined, probably. I collected everything.

How long will she'll be out of it? I wondered. Was she going to fight me when she regained her senses? Going back into the library with her didn't seem an option. What I wanted was time enough to convince her I wasn't going to hurt her, that I wasn't working with the Volturi, and that she and Alice were in danger, but I could help them, if they let me. Now, if I could get her to my house, I would have a better control of the situation. But how? Certainly not with my motorcycle. On foot, and carrying an unconscious woman, it would be suspicious. Could I run the distance at vampire speed and not be noticed at all? Unlikely. 7th and 8th Avenues had some traffic all night and there would also be pedestrians.

Uncertain, I carried her to the front of the building. Then the god of sleepless New York came to my aid. A taxi. I kept Bella upright, making it look as though she were leaning on me. With my free arm I hailed the cab, and it stopped.

"Come, honey," I said, opening the door, "I'll get you better in no time. Some strong coffee will be the thing..."

"I'm sorry, she had a little too much to drink," I said to the driver, lying smoothly and giving him my address. He was unsurprised – it wasn't the first time he had picked up a passed out passenger, and his main concern seemed to be that she could barf on his seats, as drunk humans are wont to do. That also wouldn't be the first time for him. I sat Bella inside, supporting her and making her rest her head on my shoulder. Using a scolding voice for the cabbie's benefit, I told her she shouldn't have drunk wine after two vodka tonics. "Never pass from a strong drink to a lighter one," I reprimanded, mentally thanking the unknown girl from whose mind I had drawn this little information. She had been sitting next to me in a Wall Street bar, where I was fishing for investment-related snippets, and she was musing about a ruined date.

After a while I realized that that I had been holding Bella in my arms for some minutes, with no thought of biting her. I had never held a human so close before, unless it was for a kill. And a few of them had been women, albeit in general I tried to choose men. Now, however, the scent enveloping me was not eliciting an incontrollable bloodlust. The stolen t-shirt I was still wearing must have done the trick because, while I had to gulp down a mouthful of venom, the thirst was tolerable. In the darkness, I buried my nose in her tresses and inhaled with pleasure: lily of the valley and vanilla - delicious. Why did I feel so content? Weird.

Much too soon, we reached our destination. I had already the fare and a generous tip ready for the driver, who waited for us to be inside before leaving, but remained unsuspicious. Would he remember us? It didn't matter, really: nobody would inquire, as I had no intention of harming Bella. Actually, I wanted to prevent her harming herself.

We reached my apartment without troubles. I laid her down on the sofa, waiting for her to regain her senses. Her senses? I had to regain mine too, because holding her in my arms, touching her, feeling her soft, warm body had affected me. And it was not lust, this time, or not only that - a mellower feeling I was unaccustomed to. Tenderness? Yes, that was the word. How strange.

But why wasn't Bella awakening? Had she been hurt by the fall? Even if she had not touched the ground, my grasp had been none too gentle. Grazing lightly her face, I felt her skin was cold and clammy, so I covered her with a light comforter, just another of my many props. I also filled a glass with water and put it on a side table. Humans in shock needed fluids, I believed.

Some time passed and finally Bella stirred, moaning, and I prepared myself for our confrontation. How could I gain her trust? How could I make her believe me?

Making sure the window was firmly shut and the door was locked from the inside, I tried to assume the most unthreatening posture I could, sitting on a chair on the other side of the coffee table.

Bella closed her eyes, opened them again and finally sat up, slowly, like she was in pain. When her gaze found me she flinched.

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(Bella)

…..

I was lying on a soft surface, covered with something warm. A blanket? I wanted to open my eyes and get my bearings, but it was so difficult. My upper arms were sore, and my head was throbbing. The pain told me I wasn't dead. Remembering my terrifying visitor and the sudden decision I had made to escape him, I couldn't believe I had survived a four story fall. Suddenly scared, I sat up, discarding the blanket and looking around. Nothing familiar. Where was I? It was a room, a living room by the look of it, well lighted and silent.

So silent that I realized I wasn't alone only when I finally saw the other occupant, quietly sitting on an armchair. It was the vampire who had stalked me. His eyes were red now, however. He must have taken off his blue contacts, or his venom had dissolved them. It happened after a few hours, Alice had explained to me.

"Oh God," I croaked, "you caught me, didn't you?"

"You must be dehydrated," he said softly. "Please drink, there is water at your side."

Pretty sure he had better ways to subdue me than putting something in the water, I drank greedily.

I couldn't figure him out. He was a vampire feeding on human blood, but he was well in control. Obviously not a nomad.

"Where am I?" I asked him.

"In my apartment," he answered, "and you must believe me, I mean you no harm."

"How did you bring me here?"

"By taxi," was his surprising answer. "I had to make the cabbie believe you were drunk. Pretty non-chivalrous on my part, I know, but it was the best I could do to explain why you had passed out."

"Am I your prisoner?" I was getting angry, but he smiled.

"Only momentarily. I just need to speak with you. When I'm done, you'll be free to leave, I promise you."

I looked around. The door and the window looked well closed and, even if I attempted to open the window, he would stop me easily. Hell, he had caught me mid-air and prevented my death. Now I didn't even know on what floor we were, but, most of all, I didn't know if I had the courage to try again. I was desperate, but I realized I wanted to live, after all. Unnoticed till then, I suddenly saw that there was a piano in the room. As in Alice's vision, the one she had told me about the last time we spoke!

"….you were in a room – with somebody. A man, but I couldn't see his face. There was an upright piano in a corner…"

"Was I in danger?" I had wondered.

"Mm, I don't know, really. I don't think so. All in all, I had a good feeling about it."

Could I trust her talent? The time of never betting against Alice had passed.

Oh, Alice, you are never wrong, but there is not a man in this room. He is a vampire, with dreadful red eyes and a beautiful face. Where did your "good feeling" come from? How could this possibly end well? What does he want from me?

My headache was worsening.

"Do you happen to have any painkillers?" I asked, despite the ridiculousness of my question.

He smiled again.

"Afraid not. But, if you carry some in your bag… here it is."

He offered me my rucksack, adding: "I don't think your cell phone survived the fall, I'm sorry. Let me get you some more water." In a blur, he was back with another filled glass. Dazed, I rummaged in my sack - where I did indeed have some Tylenol - and gulped down two pills.

The vampire returned to his chair. The fact that he had bothered to retrieve my bag, a small act of kindness, confused me. Of course he couldn't have left it laying around in the library's yard – but he could have thrown it away. Then he said: "I have little to offer in terms of comfort, but I do have coffee and tea. Sometimes I have a human guest here. Shall I make some for you? No milk or sugar, I'm sorry."

After a few minutes I was cozily drinking a cup of green tea in my savior/kidnapper's living room. It was surreal and yet, in my previous life, I had often drank and eaten in the company of supernatural beings, considering it absolutely normal.

My headache was better. I was finally able to formulate some questions.

"You told me you were with the Volturi, but aren't anymore. Is that true? Who are you?"

"When I was with them my name was Antony Volturi. I was their Inquisitor."

Him!

The mind reader, the one who had caused my family's destruction. But also the one who had run away, thus allowing for Alice's escape. Apparently, he hadn't told his companions of my existence, Alice was sure of it. Had he really left the Volturi and not returned to them?

Oh God, I truly should have died, because there was no way I could keep things from him. More than ever, I realized how helpless I was. I had failed and now I was in his white cold hands, literally. "So you are a telepath, you know what I am thinking?" I asked.

I was in for another surprise, however.

"No. For some reason your mind is closed to me. I have no idea of what you are thinking. You have to ask me, if you want answers."

There was a question that burned in my mind:

"Are the Volturi looking for me?"

"As far as I can say, they don't know you exist. I saw you in Alice's mind. But I never told my… colleagues." This confirmed Alice's opinion.

I was desperately trying to read his face, singularly expressive for a vampire. He seemed sincere; he looked sincere. Either that, or his luring power was working on me.

It didn't matter, because he added:

"They are looking for Alice, though. I know that the wolves protect her and disable the Volturi tracker's talent, but Demetri hasn't given up. He needs to find her, because he is disgraced, having lost her and me. Now he is here in New York and intends to plant a human spy in the Quileutes' reservation. Maybe he has already done it. This is the reason I needed to speak with you urgently. If the spy is good, the Volturi might discover the whereabouts of your friend, and also learn about your existence."

My heart missed a beat.

I was floored by the extent of his knowledge. He had found me, he knew how Alice protected herself. But of course! He had seen me with Leah, and he must have read her mind. Evidently, not all vampire gifts were disrupted by the shape shifters. After all, Jasper had calmed the volatile young wolves more than once. One hilarious time he had put Paul to sleep, literally.

But now, to save Alice and my friends, I needed for him to tell me more.

"Look, Antony," I started, but he interrupted me.

"Antony died in Canada. I am Edward now, Edward Masen."

"Please Edward," I pleaded, "tell me everything. How do you know about Demetri's plans?"

He told me and the story, thoroughly unpleasant, rang true. Puzzled by the fact that the tracker had been unaware of Edward, I asked him why, but he wouldn't tell me the reason of his immunity.

"Something extraordinary happened to me in a Canadian lake. It is private and I won't disclose it, because it has nothing to do with the present situation. Suffice to say that Demetri can't sense me anymore, without the wolves' benefit."

This was said with a smirk, and somehow it convinced me that he was being truthful. A liar wouldn't admit that there was something he kept secret. I had to reassess the situation.

But my head wouldn't function. Painkillers on an almost empty stomach aren't a good idea. The first rush of adrenaline, which had kept me awake when I realized I was in a vampire's lair, had spent itself. At 3 am I was dog tired, confused and - despite the danger I was in, despite the need to work out a plan - I needed some rest.

Okay, Edward, do your worst, I thought, because I'm going to sleep on your sofa.

I told him my intention, and he was the one surprised, this time.

"Of course, I understand," he said. "We'll speak more in the morning, then. Sleep well." And he switched off the light, unnecessary for him.

Wrapped in his comforter I felt strangely protected, not in danger at all. I fell asleep within minutes.

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Note

Next chapter, titled The Death Instinct, is one of the reasons that inspired me to write this story. At first I wanted to develop something similar as an outtake of The Pilgrimage (where the plot reconnects with Twilight), but Sigmund Freud's theory truly belongs here.