Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight.

Edward arrived at the mental institution and was reunited with Bella. Rosalie, Emmett, and Jasper searched Forks for survivors and told the wolves Bella was dead. The Cullen's camp was attacked, but Carlisle made a truce with the other coven's leader and they were informed of the Volturi's mandate. Next the Cullens met with the Denali coven. Meanwhile, Laurent betrayed their whereabouts to the Volturi. The Volturi returned to Denali and took Bella, agreeing to let the Cullens accompany them to Volterra after some quick thinking on Bella's part.

Chapter 10 (BPOV)

"Bella," a velvet voice whispers in my ear, "Bella, love, it's time for you to awake."

A cold hand gently strokes my hair, and I lean contentedly into the touch. I yawn as I open my eyes to look into his beautiful golden eyes. Sure enough, I am met by the familiar gaze of my beloved, but the background startles me. I blink several times as if the generic plane interior were the product of a lingering dream.

My heart contorts as memories of the previous day return to me. Running through the frigid Alaska air in Edward's arms, the Cullens cut off from the world, forcing me to fight for my own life against beings who could snap my neck before I could utter the slightest protest. I throw my arms around Edward's neck, recalling how close I had come to being taken from him forever.

"We've arrived in Volterra, love," he tells me, "If you want to sleep, I can carry you to the car."

"No, I'll walk," I protest immediately, stumbling to my feet. I'd tried so hard to make the Volturi see me as a strong person, and I don't want them thinking I need to be carried.

Edward stands with me and takes my hand. "A car is waiting for us outside to take us to the Volturi's castle. The guards have already gone ahead to alert Aro of our arrival. They'll be waiting for us when we get there."

I shudder at the thought of being trapped inside their lair. "Don't worry," my beloved assures me, "They won't hurt you; I won't let them."

He leads me swiftly down the aisle to the door to the outside. I squint at the bright sun revealed from the outside until my eyes adjust. I survey the land around me. We are on the outskirts of the city that I assume is Volterra. A nondescript black car is waiting a few feet from the steps. I notice that the chauffer sparkles, finding humor in the observation at first before remembering where our glittering driver is taking us. Then my eyes lock on the vampire beside me, and it's all I can do to keep my jaw from falling open in awe.

What good deed did I do to deserve him?

He pulls me gently down the steps and, like the gentleman he was born and raised to be, opens the car door for me. I blush at his gesture and slide into the back seat. He slides in beside me and wraps his arm around my shoulders protectively. I smile and lean into his embrace as the engine purrs to life.

I always expected that if I ever traveled to Europe, the cities would be bustling with festivities and people. Though I know that I will probably never see a city like that, I was still a little disappointed. Of course, if you'd asked me about going abroad last summer, I would have expressed a desire to go to France on vacation with Edward. My life is just full of black holes and revelations now, I suppose. There are no people on the streets of Volterra. My stomach twists as I think of the vampiric clean up crew they must have sent out before my arrival; bodies would have been terribly unattractive and frightening to the incoming humans the Volturi are expecting.

As we drive, I picture the people who might have lived here a few days ago. Children playing outside. Expecting mothers picking out names for the children who would now never know life or pain. As we move into the commercial part of town, my visions change. Young women shopping. College students studying abroad here or college students visiting their families on spring break. Men working in the tiny shops, their families waiting for them at home. Teenagers laughing with their friends. Small children peeking in the windows of toy shops. The people gradually switch from figments conjured up purposefully by my mind to phantoms that won't go away. I can't not see them.

Finally, the car stops and the phantoms fizzle away like the smoke of a candle. The streets are empty yet again, and a castle looms ahead of us. I grab Edward's hand and glance up at him for confirmation of what I already know.

"We're here," he mutters bleakly, moving slowly to open the car door for us without releasing my hand. He pushes it open with his free hand and leads me onto the sidewalk. The car pulls away a moment after I step onto the sidewalk, leaving Edward and I alone at the base of the castle.

"Ah, Edward, my dear, dear friend!" a vampire in a black cloak exclaims, materializing seemingly out of nowhere in the entryway, "How great it is to see you!"

"The pleasure is mine, Aro," Edward responds cordially.

So this is Aro, one of the three leaders of the Volturi. Upon further inspection, I recognize him from the painting in Carlisle's study. Strangely, I feel a twinge of sympathy for the vampire who used to murder on a regular routine, sent his guards to round up all of the humans, holds the life of my family in his hands, and will probably never let me leave this place alive. From the millennia he has been in existence, he has never seen a crisis such as this. There are a great number of vampires in the world now, and all but twelve depend on the now nearly extinct human race as their food source. Now he's stuck with finding a way to appease them or risk an uprising.

"And you've brought your little human friend! Your family has told me much about her. To think, a vampire and a human in love! Fascinating…" he trails off before shaking his head, "It's too bad this had to happen. We could learn so much. Of course, I'm glad you care for this young one, or else she would not be here with us today. Why don't you come in? Your family is waiting inside."

"Thank you, Aro," Edward says blandly, leading me to the grand entrance Aro had propped open.

Just as he said, the rest of the Cullen family is sparkling just beyond the entryway along with several other cloaked vampires. Edward pulls me me to stand between him and Jasper, holding me closer to himself protectively.

"Now that we're all together, we can discuss the future. We will begin of that of the young human there," Aro says, pointing to me, "You said that she is your son Edward's mate, Carlisle?" As if he needed clarification.

"Undoubtedly."

"But, as I'm sure you can understand, we need every human we can get now. These are desperate times, my old friend," Aro says gravely.

"Yes, Aro, we understand that. And I'm sure you understand the tie of mates. You have seen and heard it countless times, as well as experienced it for yourself. That is the tie between my son and Bella. I implore that you please consider not tearing them apart. Bella is like a daughter to me, just like Alice and Rosalie. Please do not do this to my family," Carlisle pleads.

For several excruciating seconds, the beating of my heart is the only sound in the room. I do not even breathe as Aro contemplates this.

"I believe I will…consider it," Aro says slowly, "I will need to see what results my guard's search yields before I make any decisions like that. For now I see no reason for you to be separated from her. I do, however, suggest that you let Gianna lead the young one to the humans' quarters. There will be all of the amenities she could want there, so she will be comfortable while we discuss other aspects of the future."

A human woman, the first human I've seen since I was locked in a room in the asylum, steps out from behind a few guards and offers me her hand. I look up at Edward. His mouth is open as if to object, and his eyes flit back and forth from me to Gianna to Aro. Finally, he breathes a sigh and nods encouragingly to me. Reluctantly, I release his hand and cross the room to stand with the human woman I assume is Gianna. I take her hand warily, and I listen to the conversation as she leads me down the corridor.

"Ah, splendid. Now, Carlisle, dear friend, I do believe I am in need of your expertise. I never thought I would utter these words, but I'm afraid I must ask if you would show us how to hunt animals," Aro asks, his disdain obvious in the way he emphasizes the last word, "It's only temporary, of course. We plan on regularly drawing blood from the humans we collect and forming a blood bank for the vampires until the humans have repopulated enough that we can resume are normal ways. This, however, will not be enough for the entire vampire race. We will need to learn to hunt animals if we wish to be fed. Will you and your family teach us?"

"Of course, Aro," Carlisle agrees with a polite smile, "I would be happy to." Eagerness to share his knowledge shines in his golden eyes.

Then Gianna and I round the corner, and I can no longer make out their words. My chest aches, moaning about their lack of presence here. I turn my head slightly to look at this human Gianna. A small smile is plastered on her face, her blood red lipstick looking quite unnatural on what I can tell is a foundation base. Questions pop up in my head about her origins. How did she survive the disease when so many didn't? How can she look so happy right now? Hadn't she lost at least someone to the disease? How is she so comfortable around vampires? Does she know their secret?

"I think you'll enjoy our accommodations, Miss…" she trails off, looking to me for my name.

"Bella," I reply quietly, not meeting her eyes, "My name is Bella."

"Well, Bella, you'll find in the humans' quarters plenty of food and water as well as places to wash up and sleep. I'm sure you're quite tired after your long ride here. You'll have company as well. Humans have been trickling in from far and wide for the last few days as the guard finds more. They're a quite interesting bunch, if I do say so myself."
I find it odd that she speaks as if this is some sort of impromptu summer camp, not a new human prison/farm. I eye her suspiciously. She must know that she is not exempt from this new prison. However she might serve them now, her only destiny can be that of the rest of us: death to quench a vampire's thirst for a week or two.

The halls of the castle are not horror-movie-scary like I had thought they would be. They remind me of a few movies of seen in the past, with castles and princesses and dungeons and dragons. Of course, in that scenario, I'd be on my way to the dungeon. Glorious art—probably all from another century—adorns the walls, making this place seem even more regal. Our footsteps echo slightly as we move forward.

"Here we are," Gianna announces proudly as we round another corner and come to a huge set of double doors. She deftly slides open the deadbolt and sends the doors open with a neat shove.

The room that greets us might have been a large parlor at some point, meant for meeting important guests and holding small parties. Buffet tables full of exotic fruits, pastries, and meats line the crème wall to my left. Several couches are arranged nearby, obviously set up in a manner to promote social interaction. The wall to my left is lined with several antique book cases. The leather-bound books pique my curiosity. What secret stories they might hold… Roughly twenty humans are spread out sparsely around the room, all very obviously keeping to themselves. The moment the doors open with a grand swing, all of their eyes shoot up to stare at us. I shrink in on myself, taking a small step backward, as the feeling of being a spectacle creeps into me.

I am vaguely aware of Gianna clearing her throat in front of me. I continue to survey the room until she speaks again. "Well, go on then. They don't bite," she instructs me sharply, smiling creepily in a way that was obviously meant to be menacing.

Skittishly, I step forward, glancing back down the hallway, half hoping Edward would come bounding down it in search of me.

Whack! My search is rewarded with a grand door slammed rudely in my face. Panic spiking in my chest, I lunge for the door handles, yanking on them furiously, to no avail. Sighing in defeat, I resignedly turn around to face the known remainder of my race.

It would appear I am truly, undeniably trapped.

Authors note: Sorry for the wait, guys! Midterms kind of snuck up on me...one minute, I had all this free time to write, and the next people are telling me to study for tests worth twenty percent of my semester grade! One of you commented that I said reviews made me review faster; please allow me to clarify: reviews inspire me, but I do not post chapters based on how many reviews I get. I post chapters when I finish them, not a moment sooner and not a day later. I really appreciated all of the reviews. I think we're up to 65 now! Plus 44 followers and 20 favorites…But who's counting? ;-) Please tell me what you thought and consider responding to the review prompt below.
Review prompt: How could Bella possibly weasel out of this one? How do you think some of the other people survived the disease?