Disclaimer: I do not own The Twilight Saga or any of its affiliates.
Chapter 12:
Edward's Point Of View:
The corridor was cold, dark, damp. My footsteps echoed around me, the noise bouncing off the gray brick walls. There was barely any light, only burning torches hanging high on the walls. As I looked down the dim hallway, the only thing in front of me was large, wooden door, guarded by two vampires in black cloaks. I knew what waited for me beyond that door. The world's strongest vampires were on the opposite side of that door, but I was not afraid. I came to get Bella back, and if not for me, then for her.
As I approached the two cloaked vampires, their unseen gazes fell upon me. Like clockwork, they turned away, facing the door. I stopped behind them, a good five feet away, not taking any chances. Their pale, chalky hands touched the door handles. One pulled one door open; the other pulled the second door. The doors swung open, a brighter light fluttering into the corridor. The light fell upon me, and my skin glowed.
I looked forward into the large room ahead of me. There sat a group of men and women, larger than any vampire coven I had ever seen. Their skin was pale, barely reflecting any light. Their eyes were pasty red, changed over the many years they had lived in the dark. I began my walk into the center of the room. With each footstep, more and more eyes fell upon me. I stood my ground, unfazed, and stopped directly in front of Aro, the leader.
He raised his head inquisitively in my direction. A small smile appeared on his face. I opened my mind to his thoughts, fearing what I might hear. I was waiting to see when he would show up. It surprises me that he took this long.
I cleared my throat, cutting out of Aro's thoughts. Instead, I focused my own. "I am Edward Cullen. I have come here to -"
"Edward Cullen," Aro exclaimed, nearly jumping out of his seat, "The creation of Carlisle Cullen, it is a pleasure to finally meet you. No doubt Carlisle has told you that he used to be a part of our family."
I nodded. "Yes, Aro, he has mentioned that. It is a pleasure to meet you officially as well. I -"
"Edward, I would love to take you around the castle. You are, as I've heard, a great vampire. You come from a family of great vampires with extraordinary powers. Is that correct?"
"Yes, we are gifted with powers from our human lives." I held back my distaste. I did not like the direction this conversation was going. The Volturi was famous for greed; they always wanted more power, no matter the cost. "But, Aro, that is not -"
"That is extravagant. What is your power again, young Edward? I seem to have forgotten."
I did not want to answer, but if I wanted to walk out of the castle alive, I needed to answer all of Aro's questions. "I can read the minds of those around me."
Aro smiled. "That is much like my power. Except I must touch the person I wish to read. And, of course, I can read all of the person's thoughts." His smile got bigger. With extreme agility, Aro stood up and walked down the stairs from his seat quickly, appearing in front of me in a matter of seconds. "May I have your hand, Edward?"
I pushed my hands away from him, holding them to my sides tightly. "I did not come here for this, Aro. You have something that I -"
Aro raised a finger to my mouth. "Sh, Edward. There is no reason to talk. Just give me your hand, and I will know everything. I prefer to know the thoughts of the person who dares to visit my coven." Aro's voice suddenly lost its friendly tone. "Now, I insist; give me your hand."
Before I could take a step away, Aro grabbed my hand and held it firmly. Instantly, I saw visions flying through my head, and I stopped trying to get away from him. I saw my human mother and father before they died. My thoughts scattered, and I saw Carlisle, Esme, and my brothers and sisters. Moments of sadness and joy. The move to Forks, Washington again. Finding Bella dazed and confused inside of our house. Victoria getting away in the forest. Bella and I making love. Bella kissing me the day of our wedding. Bella disappearing from my fingertips so suddenly. Emmett killing Laurent. My depression. My family outside of the castle, waiting for me come out with Bella.
With what strength I had, I pulled free of Aro's strong grasp. "You've seen enough." I took a step back but was stopped by another vampire, one I knew by the name of Felix. I was being corralled.
"Oh, Edward, I'd love to see more." Aro took a step backwards, and as if on cue, his brothers, Marcus and Caius stood up behind him. "But sadly, I don't have that kind of time. However, I do have time to get rid of you."
"You haven't given me a chance to speak. I am simply here to get my wife back, my Bella. That is all I want. Just give her to me, and we will be gone. We will never bother you again."
Aro chuckled. "It's not that easy, Edward. She is one of us now, and she is married to one of us as well." My heart sank. "That is love that you cannot break apart. Isn't that right, Demetri?"
Left of Aro, Demetri appeared from the dark corridor. His stare was blank yet focused, as if his thoughts were not on this planet at the moment. I opened my mind to him, but suddenly, a sharp pain entered my head. My head felt as if it were on fire. I pressed my hands to the sides of head, hoping to relieve the pain. It refused to cease. I looked around me, trying to find the cause of this pain. The young girl on the far right of the coven had a wicked smile on her face. Jane was their weapon, and they were using her perfectly, not allowing me to use my power.
As the pain increased, I could not restrain myself. I screamed out in pain, falling to my knees. Suddenly, a woman with chocolate hair and bright red eyes ran out from the same dark corridor as Demetri. The beautiful woman ran towards me until Alec, Jane's brother, grabbed her. She tried to break free of his grasp but to no avail.
"Aro! Aro!" she screamed, "Let him go! Stop this now! Demetri, make him stop! Please stop!"
Despite her efforts, the pain got worse. I pressed against my head more, but the pain would not stop. I collapsed fully on the floor, ironically bowing at Aro's feet. A pair of hands grabbed my shoulders and pulled me to my feet. Felix's grip was relentless.
Aro stared at me with wicked eyes. "There was no reason for you to come here. Now, we just have a really big mess to clean up. There are too many vampires in Volterra, and because of your actions, your family will suffer the consequences. Felix, take him away."
The pain continued as Felix dragged me out of the main room. My eyes fell on the beauty captured by Alec. She was squirming in his arms, trying to break free. Her eyes met mine, and she mouthed to me, "I love you, Edward."
I smiled back, all that I could really do because of the pain. As the doors shut in front of me, I caught one last glimpse of Bella. Not knowing what waited for me outside of the castle, not knowing if my family would even be there, I closed my eyes, despite the pain, and held onto that last sight of Bella. That was the only thing that would not allow me to give up.
Bella's Point Of View:
Alec's grip on me was impossible to break free of. After the double doors closed and Edward was not longer in my sight, I stopped moving. I felt defeated, almost like Aro and The Volturi had one. But Edward's smile gave me hope, hope that I would be out of this place and back in Edward's arms.
Aro turned around towards me and gestured at Alec. He threw me on the ground, and I hit it hard. For once in my life, I actually saw that I was fragile among other vampires, vampires that were much stronger than me. I looked at my hands when they impacted, and there were little fractures. Quickly, they disappeared, but not before panic set in.
I stood up as fast I could, not allowing my dignity to be destroyed. I glanced over at Jane and saw that she still had a determined wicked look on her face. My eyes went back to Aro. "Tell Jane to stop. Edward is no longer a threat. Call her off."
Aro gave me a weak grin. "Jane, is he out of the castle yet?"
"Not yet, Aro." Her high voice echoed through the large room.
"Bella, she was not instructed to stop until Edward got out of the castle. We can't have Felix having a difficult time with Edward, can we?" I had nothing to say to him. Everything I wanted to do involved me killing him. Even though the hatred was welled up inside me, I knew I could not fight him; I was not strong enough. "Demetri, please escort Bella back to your bedroom. Close the door, and make sure she cannot get out. We will deal with her later after I've heard that Edward's family is destroyed."
"No!" I screamed. "No! No! No!"
"Take her away."
Demetri walked over to me and grabbed my arm. He pulled me with more force than I had ever seen him use. We walked away fast, down the dark corridor that we had come out of. I knew I should not have let him walk past me into the main room. But what I did not understand was why he did not pull me into the open with him. Why did he not out me when he had the chance?
When we reached the bedroom, he slammed the door open and threw me inside. He closed the door behind him, coming into the room with me. His face showed panic, love, and fear all in one. Without speaking, he walked over to the window in the corner of the room. He punched it, glass shattering everywhere. He turned towards me and grabbed my hands.
"Bella, you have to go. You cannot stay here anymore; they will kill you. I love you too much to see that happen to you. Deep down, I knew this love wouldn't last because your memory would come back. However, I still fell madly in love with you. And now, because I love you, I want you to go. I want you to be happy with your husband. I want you to have a long life and a lot of happiness with the man you were always supposed to be with."
I pulled from his grip and rested my hands on the sides of his face. "I always knew there was a good man inside of you. That's why I trusted myself to fall in love with you. Without you, I don't know what I would have become. You don't belong here, but you know better than to leave. I love you, Demetri, and I will live my life for you with Edward. I will never forget you and what you've done for me." I kissed his soft lips.
"Go now, Bella. Please, be safe. Don't show yourself to the humans. Stick to the shadows, and follow their scent. You were married to Edward; you are tuned into his scent. Follow it, but don't show yourself off. If any human sees you, they will kill you. I can protect myself. I'm a tracker; they can't afford to lose me. However, they will kill you if they have the chance. Be careful."
I nodded, and Demetri picked me up, boosting me out of the window. The sun hung low in the sky, night coming. It reflected off of my skin, making me sparkle. I went through the window and fell onto the grass. Demetri poked his head out and smiled at me. I blew him a kiss good-bye, and with that, I stood up, walking towards the shadows, in search of my one true love.
