10. Harbinger
Bella and Edward didn't go home right away. When they got close enough to the house to hear the murmured conversations inside, Edward surrendered the game of tag to Bella and climbed up into a tree. He settled down on a limb, leaning back against the thick trunk and kicking his legs out in front of him.
Bella followed suit, scaling a tree nearby and perching on a limb level with Edward's.
"Shouldn't we go in?" she asked, eyeing the house through the trees.
"We can if you want to."
"Doesn't Carlisle . . ."
"Carlisle just wants reassurance that we didn't kill each other on the way home. He can hear us. He's satisfied."
Bella smiled and got more comfortable on her limb. "So . . ." she began. "Vampires? And werewolves? And apparently shape-shifting wolves that are different from actual werewolves?"
Edward shrugged. "Who knew, huh?"
"What about fairies?" she asked. "Are they real?"
He laughed out loud. "No. Well, not that I know of. But then, most of the world's fauna is smart enough to try and avoid our kind, so maybe I've just never come across one."
"What about witches?"
"Oh, yeah, absolutely."
"Really?"
"Sure. Voodoo, the Occult, various other ancient magicks . . . believe me, they're real. They've gone out of style in our lifetime, but that's probably a good thing. They're not something to play around with."
"Hm." Bella thought for a moment. "Aliens?"
He grinned. "I've never had any close encounters myself, but I've never been to Roswell."
Bella giggled. "I have. My mom went through a kick where she was sure that celestial beings had come to earth to enlighten those who were open-minded enough to receive them."
"Hmmm . . ." He tilted his head back and stared up at the cloudy sky. "I wonder how alien blood would taste."
She giggled again.
They stayed outside for half an hour longer, talking about nothing in particular, until Edward glanced toward the house.
"Carlisle wants us to go inside," he said, sliding gracefully off of his limb and dropping to the ground. He waited for Bella to join him and then headed toward the house.
When they got inside, Bella's eyes immediately searched out Jasper. He was sprawled on his stomach on the living room floor with a chess board in front of him. Emmett was opposite him, and Bella heard Carlisle's footsteps on the stairs. He had changed clothes, she noticed as he descended the steps, and was now knotting a necktie over a fresh Oxford shirt. He smiled at both of them, but addressed his remarks to Edward.
"While I'm at work, I'd like you to move your personal effects from your bedroom to my office."
There was a confused beat, and then Edward's mouth popped open. "Oh, come on! Are you serious?"
"You can box up my books if you'd like to use the shelves, but please leave Esme's things where they are."
"Why is it always my room?" he demanded.
Jasper gave a snort of laughter. "You have the best view."
"Ha, ha," Edward muttered.
"The others have a greater need for privacy," Carlisle said. He hadn't broken stride in the wake of Edward's indignance, and was now picking up a brief case from beside the door. He turned back and met Edward's gaze. "I'm sorry. I know it's inconvenient, but it's clear that Isabella needs the space more than you do right now."
"What?" Her eyes grew wide in alarm, and she looked back and forth between Edward and Carlisle, only just catching the implication. "No! I don't want—I mean, I don't—"
"It's okay," Edward said, heaving a sigh. "He's right, you do need it. Come on, I'll show you your new room."
Bella followed him, still protesting, but he waved away her concerns.
"Really," he said, reaching the top floor and turning toward a closed door. "It's practically tradition, now. Someone new shows up and I surrender my bedroom."
"I don't want you to have to do that."
He stopped at the door and turned, giving her an easy smile. "Don't worry about it. It will only be for few days. I'm sure Esme will do a quick remodel when she gets home and fix me up a new space."
"What, just like that?"
He laughed as he pushed through the door. "She's always working on some remodeling project or another. Can't you tell? There's no way a house this old was built with five bathrooms and a gourmet kitchen."
Bella nodded in response, but she was staring around the room that they had just entered. One wall was entirely glass, just like the first floor, and another was completely covered with shelves. CDs filled most of them, though the bottom one was crammed with vinyl records.
"You like music," she observed.
He smiled at his collection. "I'm rather fond of it."
"What's your favorite?"
"It changes with my mood." He moved to a stereo resting on a shelf among the CDs and pressed a button on a small MP3 player on top of it. A song began playing, a little heavy on the bass for Bella's tastes, but she was surprised to realize she recognized it.
"Phil used to play this all the time."
"Phil?"
She caught her breath and turned away quickly. She hadn't meant to let anything personal slip.
"Bella?" Edward moved around in front of her, stooping down to try and see her eyes. He smiled crookedly, his dimple making an appearance. "Old boyfriend?"
She shook her head, not completely sure why she felt this compulsion to keep everything to herself. Edward had been perfectly nice, and after all, she had already told him a little bit about her mother.
"My mom's boyfriend," she said. "Or I guess, her husband now."
"Your mom just got married?"
She nodded. "That's, um . . . that's why I was in Mexico."
She waited for him to push for more information, but he just straightened and smiled. "I'll bet it was beautiful. We don't often get down to the sunnier parts of the country, what with the conspicuous sparkling."
Bella let herself grin in response, relieved to feel the atmosphere lighten again.
"Come on. We should probably clear some of Carlisle's shelves before we start hauling CDs in there." He led her back down the stairs to the second floor and strode into a room that Bella thought must be the most beautiful space she had ever seen. The solid desk was dark mahogany, the chairs leather, and three of the walls sported built-in shelves that were filled with musty, fragrant, beautiful books. Just off of the main office was a nook containing a tall drafting desk spread with sketches.
Bella drew in a deep breath, inhaling in the scent of paper and ink that she had loved all her life. She let it out and moved to stand in front of one set of shelves, letting her fingers hover over the spines, afraid to actually touch them.
The collection was eclectic. Some of the books were new, but some looked ancient. There were half a dozen languages just on this one shelf, and the English titles referenced physics, philosophy, politics, art, mathematics, physiology, astronomy. . . .
Edward chuckled at her reaction. "I take it you like to read?"
Bella jerked her hand back, having once again revealed more of herself than she had intended. "Um. Yeah." She ducked her head, staring at the dirt and pine needles that clung to her sweater. Yet another ruined shirt.
"Come here." Edward led her out of the room again, an eager smile on his face. "Carlisle is a little bit particular about his personal collection, but the rest of us aren't."
Bella followed him up to the third floor again, and he led her through a doorway into a room that must have taken up half of the floor. The walls were lined with computers, printers, photocopiers, and various similar items that Bella didn't recognize, but in the middle were several long bookshelves that stood about chest high. The shelf on one end only held a handful of books, but the rest were full, sporting just as varied a collection as the shelves in Carlisle's study, only heavily interspersed with fiction. There were classics, contemporary novels, even a small grouping of paperback romances, and they all looked well-thumbed.
"This is the family collection," Edward said. "Help yourself. We all do."
"Are you sure?" She looked timidly at the long shelves, her fingers itching to start pulling books from them.
"Yeah, but be sure to grab the ones you want to read and stash them in your room. We may not have these ones much longer."
She started and looked longingly back at the books. "Why not?"
That last shelf won't stay empty for long, and once we fill it we'll get rid of the lot."
Bella gave him a puzzled look, and he explained further.
"We're constantly buying books. We all pick up whatever piques our interest, and when we're done with them we put them in here to share with the rest of the family. But if we'd kept all the books we'd ever bought, we wouldn't have room to breathe in this house. Once we run out of shelf space, we donate them all to a charity and start filling the shelves again."
"I want to read them all," Bella whispered, her eyes riveted on the books.
Edward smiled down at her. "You can do that if you want to. We'll hang onto them for a little longer."
"Oh—no. It's fine, I don't want to inconvenience you."
He just laughed and turned back toward the stairs. "Grab an armful and take them to your room. I'm going to track down some boxes so we can start packing up Carlisle's study."
Bella was still a little unsure about helping herself to the books, but the pull was too strong to resist. After a long hesitation, she snatched up the first ten that sat on the shelf nearest her and ran back to Edward's room, leaving them on the floor next to his leather sofa.
The evening passed pleasantly. She spent it with Edward, carefully tucking Carlisle's books away, and then moving Edward's CDs and clothes to Carlisle's study. Edward sometimes hummed or sang along with his music—also an eclectic mix, apparently on shuffle—and sometimes chatted idly with Bella as they worked. She opened up a little more about her mother, telling Edward about some of the crazier things the two of them had done together.
Edward, in turn, told Bella about his vampire family. He described extreme versions of popular sports, trips they had taken together, and the way they had all come together to create a family of misfit vampires who had risen above their baser natures.
"Are there others who drink animal blood?" Bella asked, when Edward had said something that implied that there were.
"A few. You'll meet one tomorrow; Alice said Eleazar is visiting. He's an old friend of Carlisle's from his Volturi days."
Bella stiffened. "He's part of the Volturi?"
"Not anymore. When he met his wife, he decided he wanted to leave. She doesn't have the stomach for the violence she saw in Volterra."
Bella turned that information over in her mind as she collected a stack of CDs and carried them into Carlisle's study.
They weren't in any hurry and they were frequently distracted, stopping often to trade stories or fiddle with Edward's iPod. Progress was sporadic. By the time they had moved Edward's CD collection and clothes to the emptied shelves and stored all of Carlisle's books in his bedroom, the sun was peeking over the eastern horizon.
Edward pilfered some hangers from Alice's closet, and the two of them carried the boxes of Bella's clothes upstairs. They started hanging up the contents, but with each new soft, fashionable article of clothing Bella's unease grew.
"What's wrong?" Edward asked, arranging a gauzy dress on a hanger.
Bella shrugged, gesturing to all of the clothes. "I don't need all of this."
He laughed. "And you think I do? Did you see how much we carried out of here?"
"Why, then? Why have so many clothes?"
He gave her a small smile, an unexpected softness in his eyes. "You just have to understand Alice." He hung up the dress and reached for another. "The others . . . I don't think they get it. I think they know that Alice loves fashion, and that she loves having plenty of money to spend on it. We all know that she buys us beautiful things as a token of affection, but I'm not sure the rest of them understand just how important those things are to her."
"And you do?"
He grinned. "I can see into her mind, remember?"
"Ah. Right."
"She doesn't remember anything of her human life," he said. "At least, nothing substantive. But every now and then, she gets a tiny flash. She's seen a dingy plaster wall, a rickety cot with a dirty mattress and a lice-infested blanket, a tiny barred window. It's always just a quick glimpse, like a flash of light in the darkness. And the way she feels when she gets them . . . the sadness, the longing . . ."
Bella furrowed her brow. "What does that have to do with clothes?"
"I can't be sure, obviously," he said, folding a pair of jeans over a hanger. "But can you imagine a young girl, imprisoned in such a horrible place? Can you guess how badly she must have wanted something pretty? An embroidered counterpane, a fashionable dress . . . these are things Alice was obviously denied. Now she can have them."
"And she wants everyone else to have them, too?"
His soft smile returned. "It's something that makes her feel cared for. So yes, she wants to share that with the rest of us."
Bella reached into the box at her feet and pulled out gray silk blouse embellished with pearls at the collar and sleeves. It was one of the most beautiful things she had ever seen, and in contrast to the hospital gowns she had worn for two months, it was truly exquisite.
"That's very thoughtful of her," she whispered.
Edward gave her an approving nod. "I'm glad you agree."
After making sure Bella was settled in her room, Edward left her to her own devices and headed downstairs. A few moments later, a soft, light piano melody drifted up to her, and she smiled to herself as she listened.
She knew she should clean up and change clothes. The rest of the family would be home soon, and she assumed she would be expected to meet them at some point. She definitely didn't want to present herself to Alice wearing any of the clothes she had destroyed that day. But the books she had piled next to the couch were begging for her attention, and she decided that it couldn't hurt to read just a few pages.
A few pages went by in seconds, though, and stretched into a few chapters, and before she knew it she had read six books. In less than a half hour. Suddenly, it didn't seem so difficult to read the entire collection of books in the library before the Cullens were ready to get rid of them. She breezed through the remainder of her stack, and then headed into the en-suite bathroom to clean up.
Edward had cleared out his personal items, but had left her a bottle of shampoo and a bar of soap, and that was all she really needed. It was still a luxury to her to be able to wash whenever she wanted, without being watched.
As tinkling piano music drifted up from downstairs, she slid her fingers down her wet skin to her abdomen and tentatively rubbed over the long scar there. She had felt it, but she hadn't yet allowed herself to look at it. It was a token of the most terrifying moment of her life, and she still didn't know how to feel about the little demon who had nearly killed her. There was a part of her that wanted to deny he existed, and if she didn't look at the scar it was easier to keep on denying.
But denial wasn't stopping the memories, so she took a deep breath and looked down.
It was surprisingly clean. There were no ragged edges, no unknit bulges, just a pale raised line that cut straight across her flat stomach, below her navel. A surgeon couldn't have left such a neat cut. It was strange, she thought, how it hadn't felt so neat at the time.
Her fingers drifted up to her ribs below her left breast and fingered the scar there. According to Joham, this was what had saved her. The venom from the little, unnatural teeth had been the difference between a vampire and a corpse. Had the boy known what he was doing when he had bitten her? Or had he just craved her blood? She could still remember what he looked like, his tiny body slick with gore, sucking at the hemorrhaging wound he had left in her stomach.
She quickly shut off the water and grabbed a towel, drying herself off roughly. She didn't want to think anymore. She needed a distraction—more books, maybe. She dressed quickly in a pair of jeans and a brightly-colored blouse, and then hurried to the library to trade her books for a new set.
She spent most of the morning reading, trying to divert all of her attention away from thoughts of Alexander. She made trip after trip to the bookshelves, returning finished books and gathering new ones, hardly noticing the sunlight that streamed through the window onto her skin and scattered refracted beams around the room.
A little after ten o'clock the clear skies clouded over again, and a half hour later she heard the crunch of tires approaching the house on the long, winding path from the highway. She tensed, but relaxed a little when she recognized the hum of Carlisle's Mercedes. She half-listened as he parked in one of the out-buildings near the house and made his way inside.
"The girls aren't home yet?" she heard him ask. He received no audible answer, but he must have seen something that satisfied him, because he continued. "And Isabella?"
Edward played a little trill on the piano, and then it fell silent. "She's fine," he said. "She's been reading all morning."
"Is she . . ."
Edward chuckled. "She's fine, Carlisle. A little less scrutiny might do her some good."
There was a moment of silence, and then Edward chuckled again as Bella heard Carlisle's footsteps on the stairs.
She tensed up, hunching down in the corner of the couch as he approached. She silently prayed that he was heading to his own bedroom, but she knew the truth before he hit the third floor. He paused for a few seconds outside her door, but just when she had started to hope that he might go away, he knocked softly.
She took a shaky breath. "Come in."
Carlisle pushed the door open and hovered in the doorway. "Hello, Isabella."
She forced a smile, reminding herself that he was supposed to be the good cop.
"I see you've discovered the library," he said, glancing toward the stack of books on the floor beside the couch.
"Um . . . is that okay?"
"Of course. I want you to make yourself at home. Have you gotten settled into your room all right?"
She nodded.
"Is there anything you need? Anything I can do to make you more comfortable?"
"No, thank you." She realized that she hadn't thanked him for what she had been given, and hurried to correct that. "I, um . . . I appreciate . . ." She couldn't seem to form words to finish her sentence, but she gestured around the room and hoped that he understood.
"It's nothing. But you'll tell me if you need anything?"
She smiled again, less forced this time, and nodded.
Carlisle looked somehow unsatisfied, and he lingered in the doorway. "Isabella, I want to apologize to you for last night—"
"It's fine," she said quickly, looking away.
But Carlisle didn't let her off the hook. He took a couple of steps into the room, then stopped himself and moved back to the doorway. "Please. It's important to me that I tell you this." He waited for her nod of acquiescence and then continued. "My wife is the most important person in the world to me."
Bella looked up curiously, confused by his apparent non sequitur.
"I love her, Isabella. And my fidelity to her is not something that has ever been, or will ever be, in question. I'm sorry that I made you uncomfortable, not only because I don't want to alarm you, but also because I don't want my position to be unclear. I love my wife, and she is the only woman I have any intention of being intimate with."
Bella stared at him, not quite certain how to respond.
"I hope you can take some comfort from that," he said gently. "I know it's not easy for you to trust me, but perhaps you can trust my loyalty to Esme."
She did find it comforting, and she nodded. But she still didn't know what to say, and Carlisle didn't seem to, either. There was a short, awkward silence, which was thankfully interrupted by the sound of another car wending its way toward the house on the gravel drive.
"That will be the girls now," Carlisle said, looking pleased. "Will you come down and meet them?"
She nodded again. "I'll be right there."
He gave her a warm smile and left her alone, pulling the door closed behind him.
Bella let out a breath in relief. It wasn't the easiest conversation she'd ever had, but it could have gone worse.
She stood and moved to the mirror in the bathroom, brushing a hand over her jeans and blouse, making sure there was no damage. She ran a hand through her hair, pleased to see that it had naturally curled into becoming waves that fell in soft cascades around her shoulders. Her eyes were still a disturbing shade of red, but that couldn't be helped. She was as presentable as she was going to get.
She wasn't exactly sure why she was so concerned about looking good to meet these women. She only knew she wanted to make a better impression on them than she had on the rest of the family.
She headed downstairs, where a sense of bright anticipation lingered over the room. The others were getting ready to head outside, and Edward glanced up at her as she hurried down the stairs.
"Hey, Bella," he said with a smile.
Carlisle looked back over his shoulder at Edward, one eyebrow raised, but said nothing.
"Got a good start on the books, huh?" he asked, oblivious to Carlisle's scrutiny.
She smiled bashfully and nodded.
"Still planning to read all of them?"
She hesitated. "Um . . . there was one on . . ." her throat went dry, and her voice dropped to a whisper ". . . on Alexander the Great."
Edward looked surprised. "The Campaigns of Alexander? You don't want to read it? It's pretty good."
She shook her head, not meeting his gaze.
"Okay. Bella's not a fan of the Hellenistic histories." He shrugged it off and beckoned for her to follow the others out the front door. He gestured to a spot off to one side of the large porch, indicating that she should stand there, and then planted himself between her and the steps.
Bella's gaze darted back and forth between the approaching red BMW and the four men anticipating its arrival. Carlisle and Emmett were both smiling broadly, but Jasper was the one who drew her attention. Everything about him seemed to soften as he watched the car approach—his eyes, his stance, even the stern frown that made Bella so anxious. He looked almost friendly.
When the car was still a good thirty yards from the house, the back door flew open and a shape that Bella dimly recognized as human flew out of it and raced toward the house. It barreled into Jasper, and it was only then that Bella could make out a girl with glossy black hair and stylish clothes, her arms and legs wrapping around Jasper as she peppered his face with kisses.
Bella gaped at her. She couldn't understand how this girl could get close to him like that, how she could completely disregard the mass of scars that covered his face and kiss him.
Carlisle distracted her by trotting down the steps and meeting the car as it rolled to a stop. He pulled open the front passenger door and drew out a woman with caramel curls that fell to her shoulders. He wrapped his arms around her, and she stretched up on her toes to meet him in a passionate kiss.
While they greeted each other, the driver's door opened and a tall, blonde goddess stepped out. She strode straight up the steps to Emmett and grabbed him by the collar, pulling him down to meet her lips in a short, hard kiss.
"I brought you back a present," she said when she let him go, dragging one manicured finger down his chest.
"Yeah? Where is it?"
Her perfect mouth twisted into a coy smile. "I'm wearing it."
She started toward the door, but the dark-haired girl wrapped around Jasper came up for air and cleared her throat pointedly.
"You don't have time for that. Eleazar is only about ten minutes behind us."
"Hell, we can do a lot in ten minutes," Emmett said with a grin. He swung his wife up into his arms and disappeared through the door.
The dark-haired girl wriggled out of Jasper's arms and strode toward Bella, but stopped even before Edward pressed a restraining hand to her shoulder. She was an inch or two shorter than Bella, and her wrists and collarbones showed a hollow delicacy that reminded Bella of her own. She wondered if this girl, too, had been malnourished when she changed. Considering the information Edward had given her, she figured it was entirely possible.
"Hi, Isabella!" she said brightly, her chipper mood almost enough to mask the gravity in her dark eyes. "It's so nice to finally meet you! I'm Alice, and the hot nymphomaniac upstairs is Rosalie."
"I heard that, you little twit!" Rosalie called down.
"What?" Alice called back innocently. "I said you were hot."
Jasper laughed to himself and moved up behind Alice, wrapping his arms around her waist.
"Um . . . thank you for the clothes," Bella said nervously.
"You're welcome! I hope there are some in there that you like. It was really hard to tell; you're not a very expressive person, are you?"
Bella shrugged apologetically.
"That's Esme," Alice said, pointing to the woman who was being escorted to the porch by Carlisle. Esme hurried up the steps toward Bella, but Edward intercepted her with a hug and an affectionate kiss on the cheek.
"We missed you," he told her.
She smiled at him and smoothed his hair, but when she started toward Bella again he turned her around and gave her a gentle push toward Carlisle. She looked confused, but she allowed herself to be shunted back into her husband's embrace.
"It's so nice to have you here, Isabella," she said. "I hope the boys have made you comfortable."
"I'm afraid we've failed miserably there," Carlisle sighed before Bella could answer. "Honestly, darling, you shouldn't leave me alone. I'm completely hopeless without you."
She laughed sympathetically and nuzzled his neck, and Carlisle let out a contented growl.
"You four go on inside," he said. "I need to kiss my wife some more."
"You're worse than Emmett and Rose," Edward teased as he strode past them. "Come on, Bella. They're going to get embarrassing in a minute."
Bella hurried after him, and as the door closed behind them she heard Esme whisper Carlisle's name in surprise.
"I know," he answered quietly. "He was like this last night, too."
Bella's curiosity was piqued, but her eavesdropping was interrupted by low moans issuing from upstairs. A few seconds later a rhythmic thumping started, and for a moment Bella was transported back in the house in Mexico, chained to her cot as she listened to Joham and one of his other victims in the bedroom upstairs. Her breath caught and her vision swam as panic threatened to engulf her.
"Bella?"
Edward's voice snapped her back, and she realized that she had grabbed his arm hard enough to tear the sleeve of his shirt.
"Are you okay?" he asked, frowning in concern.
She let go of him quickly, falling back a step and mumbling an apology.
He glanced toward the ceiling. "It's uncomfortable, isn't it? I find the best way to deal with it is to drown them out." He ignored the damage to his shirt and headed toward his piano, beckoning for her to follow. Taking his place on the bench, he started pounding out an energetic tune that all but obscured the sounds drifting down from the second floor.
Bella moved closer and eased down onto the floor next to the piano, leaning against one leg so she could feel the vibrations as Edward played.
She tried not to look toward the living room, where Jasper and Alice were wrapped together in one of the armchairs, thoroughly enjoying their reunion.
After a few minutes Carlisle and Esme strode in, and Esme stopped short. She examined the damage that had been done to the hardwood floors and turned to Carlisle, one eyebrow arched in reproach.
"Like I said," he told her, "you really shouldn't leave me alone."
Esme just laughed. "It's fine. I was planning on redoing the main floor anyway. You should have seen the hotel, Carlisle. The entire place was decorated in nothing but white. It was light and airy, while still managing to feel absolutely decadent. I want to recreate it here."
"That sounds beautiful, my love."
Carlisle kissed her again, and Bella looked away. If nothing else, he was backing up his claim that he was wholly invested in his wife. It was reassuring, in a way, but it still made her uncomfortable to see them together.
Their canoodling was soon interrupted, however, by the sound of yet another car turning onto the gravel drive that led to the house. Edward stopped playing, and Carlisle cocked an ear.
"It's the whole family!" he said, sounding delighted. "Alice, you didn't tell us they wereall coming."
"You'd never have any surprises in your life if I told you everything."
"Stay here," Edward said softly, drawing Bella's attention back to him. He once again moved between her and the door, setting himself up as a barrier between her and everyone else. Carlisle and Esme both watched him with an air of curious fascination, but he didn't acknowledge them.
The arriving visitors soon demanded their attention, and they moved out onto the porch with Jasper and Alice. Bella heard the car park and a flurry of joyful greetings—most of them from women, she noticed. That made her feel a little better, and her shoulders relaxed minutely.
Emmett and Rosalie came downstairs as the crowd was moving inside from the porch, and more greetings followed. One of the women—a tall, stunning strawberry blond—extracted herself from the melee and made a beeline for Edward. Her lips turned up in a provocative smile as she approached him and threw her arms around him.
"Edward! It's been far too long! Why don't you ever come visit me?"
Edward smiled and greeted her warmly, accepting her enthusiastic embrace.
For just a moment, Bella couldn't breathe. It hadn't occurred to her to consider Edward's relationship status before. While the other men had greeted their wives, her only thought for Edward had been gratitude that he was there to serve as a buffer between her and the others.
But she was thinking about it now. With this beautiful woman clinging to him, threading her fingers through his hair, she couldn't help but think about it. And she didn't like it.
Was this Edward's girlfriend? She couldn't be his wife, or they would live together, surely. Judging by the way she was plastered against him, though, the two of them were obviously close.
Bella scowled at her. She looked too old for Edward. And too tall. And too . . . blonde.
"Edward, your shirt is ripped!" she observed a little too brightly as she trailed a hand down his arm. "I'd be happy to help you remove it, if you'd like."
Edward laughed. "I think I'll keep it on for now. Thanks anyway."
She spotted Bella then and peeled herself away from Edward, giving him a surprised look. "And who's your friend? She's young, isn't she?" She propped a hand on her hip and wagged a finger at Carlisle. "You haven't been playing matchmaker again, have you?"
"Ha!" Carlisle shook his head. "Believe me, Tanya, I've learned my lesson. No, Isabella is a new acquaintance of ours."
"Oh?" Tanya started to push past Edward, but he wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her back.
Tanya seemed pleased, but she gave Edward a curious look. "Aren't you going to let me say hello?"
"Nope."
Bella sagged in relief, grateful to Edward for running interference, but her relief was short-lived. She caught sight of a distinguished-looking man in the crowd of women, and her breath caught in her throat. She knew she had never seen him before, but his dark hair and heavy eyebrows, juxtaposed with the olive tone of his vampire pallor, reminded her forcefully of Joham.
"Isabella?" Jasper asked, just loud enough that she could hear him over the chatter of voices.
She froze, her eyes shooting fearfully to his, but she saw only concern in his gaze.
"Are you all right?"
She nodded quickly. She didn't want him deciding she needed to be restrained again.
Carlisle watched their exchange closely, but when nothing came of it he made the introductions. "Isabella, these are some dear friends of ours. This is Eleazar, and his wife Carmen." He indicated the man and a dark-haired woman standing with him. "And this is Kate and Irina, and there with Edward is the coven leader, Tanya."
Tanya gave her a fluttering wave, and Bella had to choke back a snarl.
Carlisle invited his guests into the living room and Bella trailed after them, pleased when Edward sat down on the hearth. She settled herself in a nearby corner, but she wished she had stayed a little closer to him when Tanya insinuated herself between them, curling up beneath Edward's arm.
"This is certainly a nice surprise," Carlisle said once they had all gotten settled. "What brings you all down from Alaska?"
"Actually, we were vacationing in New York," Eleazar said, a light Spanish accent coloring his speech. "We intended to stay a few more weeks, but . . ." He exchanged glances with the Carmen, who was seated beside him on the couch. "We ran into an old friend of yours, Carlisle."
Carlisle was sitting in an armchair opposite his visitor, and he leaned forward in interest. "Oh? Who was it?"
"He called himself Alistair."
Carlisle laughed out loud and rocked back in his chair. "You met Alistair, did you? And how did you find him?"
"Not well, I'm afraid." Eleazar furrowed his brow in confusion. "Am I missing something?"
"I'm not sure Alistair has been well a day in his life. The man has paranoia down to an art."
Bella thought Eleazar looked almost hopeful. "Is he trustworthy?"
"Not very. He doesn't lie, exactly, but everything becomes much more sinister in his mind than it really is."
"Perhaps you can help me interpret the truth, then," Eleazar said gravely. His grip tightened on Carmen's hand. "He told me . . . he told me some bad news."
"Oh?"
His gaze locking with Carlisle's. "He said Chelsea is dead."
Carlisle didn't react. For several long seconds he just stared at Eleazar. When he finally spoke, his tremulous whisper betrayed just how much Alistair's news had affected him.
"Perhaps a bit more context?"
Eleazar nodded. "Your friend noticed us because of our eyes."
Bella's gaze flicked to each of the visitors, noting their eye colors. They were all a deep amber, several shades darker than the pale gold she had noticed on Carlisle.
"He asked us if we were acquainted with you," Eleazar continued, "and when we said we were, he told us he was on his way to visit you."
"That seems odd," Carlisle murmured. "He's never sought me out before."
"He didn't seem happy about the trip. But he said he owed you a debt, and he seemed to think that telling you about Chelsea would settle it."
Carlisle tapped the arm of his chair thoughtfully. "It would, if it's true. Is he coming here, then?"
"No. I told him I would carry the message to you, and he seemed quite happy to rid himself of the responsibility."
"Interesting that he trusted you," Carlisle mused. "Did you tell him you knew Chelsea?"
"No. But he got very anxious when he saw that I understood the implications of her death."
"What are the implications?" Rosalie asked. She and Emmett were standing behind Carlisle's chair, wrapped together in an intimate embrace.
"Chelsea is indispensable to the Volturi," Eleazar explained. "So much that she is considered nearly equal to the brothers themselves. Her gift bonds them all together. Without her, there's no way so many of them could live peacefully in such close proximity."
"So if she's dead, there's no Volturi?"
Eleazar and Carlisle exchanged grim looks. "That's right."
"Carlisle?" Jasper said. "Do you think it's true?"
He drew in a deep breath, considering the question. "Alistair doesn't fabricate stories from nothing. Eleazar, did he tell you how he got his information?"
"He said he . . . divined it. He claims there was some trouble with a newborn hunting in the city, and Chelsea and Afton went out to take care of it. They didn't come back."
The room fell silent again, but Emmett's voice broke it. "We need to know. Someone has to go to Italy."
"Carmen and I are going," Eleazar said.
Carlisle frowned. "Are you sure you want to do that? It could be dangerous."
Eleazar met his gaze solemnly. "They were my coven for a hundred and fifty years, Carlisle. I'm going."
"Can I charter you a plane?"
"That's not necessary," Alice said quietly.
Everyone turned to where she was perched on Jasper's knee, her dark eyes wide and haunted.
"I'm sorry, Eleazar. When you get there they'll be gone. There's damage in the castle . . . singe marks on the floors and walls . . . I'm so sorry."
Eleazar looked stricken. "Are they all dead? Surely someone—"
"Don't," Jasper said, his voice firm, but quiet. "Don't try to look for them, Alice." He gathered her up in his arms and tucked her against his chest, turning his hard gaze on Eleazar. "This is not her responsibility. If you want to chase them all down, that's on you."
"Of course," he said, his tone and posture deferential. "I'm sorry to have overstepped."
Jasper gave him a nod and then started whispering softly in Alice's ear.
Tanya was paying rapt attention, her fingers playing absently at the hair at the nape of Edward's neck. "This isn't good, Carlisle. With the Volturi gone, certain expectations will fall to the next coven in line."
"And that is?"
"Yours. This is the largest coven I know of. Without someone like Chelsea, seven of our kind living together is nearly impossible."
He shook his head dubiously. "My family enjoys a certain notoriety, but we're not taken very seriously. Our hunting methods make us something of a joke to the others."
"They laugh at the Yellow Eyes, but they recognize talent. And your family has considerable talent."
"She's right," Alice said, twisting around in Jasper's lap. "There haven't been very many definite decisions made, but over the next few weeks we may be receiving some visitors. I couldn't figure out why, at first, because few of them seem to have any particular agenda."
"They'll be feeling things out," Tanya said. "Checking to see if you'll take Aro's place."
"Sam's boys won't be happy about that," Emmett added.
Tanya frowned. "Maybe you should all come join us in Alaska for a while. It won't keep anyone from finding you, but you could avoid a run-in with the dogs."
Bella's head whipped around to stare at Tanya, and then at Carlisle. If they left, what would that mean for her? Would they leave her to do whatever she liked in their former territory? Or would they make her stay with them and take her away from Charlie?
Carlisle didn't miss her panicked expression, and he shook his head. "We can't. At least not yet. Isabella has business here, and I promised her I would help her with it." He glanced around the room. "Of course, I won't stop any of my family from joining you now, if they so choose."
Bella looked at the others. Emmett and Rosalie were shaking their heads, as were Jasper and Alice. Her eyes flicked to Edward, who was sitting next to Tanya, examining the torn sleeve of his shirt.
He wasn't shaking his head, and Bella felt a stab of anxiety.
"Edward?" Carlisle said expectantly.
"Hm?" He glanced up. "Oh, I'm with Bella." He leaned around Tanya and winked at her.
"Oh." Tanya withdrew a couple of inches, looking startled, but Edward hooked an arm through hers. She let him pull her back to his side, but she shot Bella a curious look out of the corner of her eye.
Bella hugged her knees. She was grateful Edward wasn't leaving her, but she didn't know what to make of his actions.
"Well," Carlisle said, "I suppose that's settled. We'll stay here for now, but we may take you up on your offer if our situation changes."
"You're always welcome," Tanya told him.
He stood up, bringing Esme with him. "Our girls need a hunt, and it looks like you could all do with one as well. Would you care to join us?"
There were murmurs of assent and the rustle of movement as everyone rose and prepared to leave. Bella stayed were she was, though, her gaze trained on Edward and Tanya, who were leaning close together and conferring in low voices. After a moment Tanya pulled back and laughed gaily.
"Of course!" she said. "It's no skin off my nose." She sidled closer to him and nuzzled his neck.
"Don't get too excited," Edward told her, tickling her sides. She giggled and fell against him, slapping his hands away.
"You're adorable like this, you know that?"
"I'm always adorable." He leaned down and kissed her cheek. "And you're a truly wonderful woman."
"I've been telling you that for decades. Come on." She stood and linked her fingers through his, pulling him to his feet. "Take me hunting, Romeo."
Edward let Tanya lead him toward the back door, but he looked back over his shoulder at Bella. "Are you coming along?"
She nodded and leapt to her feet, hurrying after him. She told herself that she craved the run, that she wanted to get outside and burn off some energy, and that her eagerness to follow had nothing to do with Edward and the strawberry blonde parasite whose hand was currently snaking beneath the hem of his shirt.