Disclaimer: – Twilight and its characters belong to Stephanie Meyer

AN: My sincerest apologies for the delay with this chapter. Some of this has been RL, some has been FFn/LJ related and some has been good old writers block.

AN: Please be assured that this story will be completed. At this stage there are two more chapters, an epilogue and two future-takes (which have both been already written) to go.

AN: I would like to thank my wonderful friends on FFn and LJ for beta'ing, pre-reading, support, encouragement and a 'virtual' shoulder to cry on. You know who you are. Without your help, more than this story would not be here.

AN: This chapter runs parallel in time with Chapter 13.

Chapter 14

Desperation is the raw material of drastic change. Only those who can leave behind everything they have ever believed in can hope to escape.

Burroughs, William S.

By the time Carlisle had reached the jetty, Edward was out of bed and had stumbled to the door. He paused until he heard the boat's engine start and then staggered, as if drunk, in the direction of the marshlands.

Arriving at his destination, he stopped and watched the colony of cormorants nesting on the north of the island. They never normally fed from birds; they were a waste of effort as each bird contained only 200-250mls of blood while a larger mammal, deer or wolf, could give them between four and five litres. He would need to kill sixteen to twenty birds to receive the equivalent amount of blood.

As much as he hated feeding from birds, almost as much as Carlisle hated rats, he knew he had no choice. He was desperate, but reasoned that he would only need to drink enough to reach the mainland where he could find one of the many deer roaming the woods around the town.

Steeling himself, he crouched, scanning the area. He set his sights on a small flock that was slightly isolated by terrain and appeared to have a number of elderly individuals. Drawing on his little strength and considerable desperation, he pounced.

He drained the eight birds he was able to capture then lurched to the lake shore where he washed his hands and face. Sitting on the bank, he let his body absorb the fluid. He could feel the strength return to his limbs, his starved body eagerly consuming the blood, leaving little excess to alter his eye colour.

Noting the sun was beginning to rise he took one last look behind him and then dove into the lake. He headed south, pacing himself; he did not want to be drained of energy and be stuck on the lake bed. Feeding from fish was worse than birds.

He reached the next island, crawling onto land he was lucky to come upon one of the small deer living there. Falling on it like a man possessed, he rapidly drained the animal. When the animal was spent he pushed the carcass aside, whining with need.

After a moment, he noted that he was able to reason and think without feeling as if his mind was being dragged through mud. For the first time all week he felt that there was a possibility for a positive end to this horrific situation; he actually believed, instead of just hoping, that he could get help for Carlisle. With this new found confidence he ran across the island and dove back into the lake, heading for the mainland. Reaching land fall as the sun had fully risen, he hugged the coast heading east. Being sure to keep concealed in the coastal scrub, he reached the point due north of Oberlin, where he turned and running as fast as he was able, headed directly towards the town and the conservatory.

Edward was taking a huge risk travelling on a clear sunny day. But he could not waste time and felt that it was worth the danger of being seen.

Flitting between buildings, keeping in the deep shade of the morning sun, he was soon hugging the walls of his building waiting for the all clear before slipping into the large front doors. Once in the building, he headed straight for his office, noting that the door was unlocked. He entered closing and locking the door behind him.

Ignoring the state of the room still disorganized from when he was last there, he strode to the small coat cupboard where he stored spare clothing. Removing a clean suit and shirt he left his office, locking the door behind him, and headed for the faculty bathroom.

He washed thoroughly, trying to remove all trace of the last twenty four hours, and re-dressed. He wrapped the soiled and torn clothes in a spare bin liner and buried them at the bottom of the bin.

Taking a look in the mirror, he hummed his satisfaction that at least his exterior (excluding his eyes) was back to its normal state. Edward made his way back to his office. As he approached he noticed his previously closed and locked office door was wide open. Entering cautiously, he stopped at the sight of someone leaning over his desk.

"Maestro?" he breathed.

The old man turned quickly taking in Edward's appearance with a single glance.

Edward nearly toppled over from the unexpected barrage of thought emanating from the man. The Maestro's thoughts had always been tightly contained and highly structured; to receive a blast wave of vision and noise from the old man was disorientating.

As Edward recovered from the torrent he began to 'see' the information, at which point his disorientation, shifted to confusion and then anger. Images of red and gold eyes, of pale skin sparkling in the sunshine, of conversations with Will, and faceless, but recognisable voices, on the phone.

Supressing the rising panic and hysteria, Edward took a step forward, blocking the old man's escape.

"Who are you?" he growled, "…and do not lie to me, I can tell if you lie to me."

The old man's eyes darted around the room to the other doorway leading to the music room.

"Don't even think about it," Edward growled. Pushing the Maestro backward until the man was sitting in a chair Edward stood over him and repeated his demand. "WHO ARE YOU? HOW DO YOU KNOW WHO WE ARE?"

The Maestro shook in his seat, terror on his face.

Edward, please. I mean you no harm! Please, I was just following orders.

"WHAT ORDERS, WHO'S ORD…" It was then that Edward realised that the Maestro had not moved his lips. He threw himself back against the wall and away from this old man who not only knew WHAT he was, but WHO he was, and WHAT he could do.

"Tell me," he demanded, his anger turning to frustration as the old man refused to answer. "I don't want to hurt you, but I will if I have to. Don't make me have to. Who are you?"

The old man put his face in his hands. Edward's anger once again began to build. He went to move towards the man when the Maestro lifted his head.

"Please, Edward. Hear me out before you react. Please, no matter what I say, please remember to be the kind, gentle soul that I met here are this very school. Be the compassionate person who is Carlisle Cullen's mate. Please agree to hear me out first, after which you may do with me as you see fit…"

He looked up at Edward. Edward stared back at the old man. His anger shifted to confusion, he did not understand what was happening but decided he had nothing to lose by hearing the man out; he might even be able to help him with recovering Carlisle.

"Alright! I promise to hear you out. Now…who are you?"

Taking a deep breath the old man looked directly into the vampires eyes.

"My name is Nuncio Trovato. I am an agent of the Volturi."

~*.*~

Edward felt as if his brain had exploded. Terror ran through his body. His eyes frantically looked for an exit, a place to run and hide away from the man who had betrayed him. Edward's eyes fixed on the shutters and the bright sunlight behind them. It was the middle of the day and there was no chance of him leaving the building without been seen by the many students and staff on the campus.

At the realisation that he was trapped his panic shifted to fury, he moved into a defensive crouch a low growl emanating from his chest. One wrong move (or any move at all) by the old man would result in the vampire springing.

They were at impasse. The Maestro could not leave at risk of setting Edward off, who in turn could not leave at risk of exposure, turning his and Carlisle's horrendous situation into a catastrophic one.

The Maestro shifted forward in his chair and murmured softly, "Edward…" he stopped at the hiss from the other and decided to try another approach.

Edward! Please listen to me!

Another growl

Please, I beg you! Let me explain…

"Explain what?" Edward screeched, "Explain how you could side with the devil himself! Was it worth it? What were you promised in exchange for your soul?"

The Maestro stilled, his face suddenly filled with grief.

I exchanged my future for my sister's life…and it was worth every decade of servitude.

Edward's body stilled, as the Maestro continued.

"My first memory is of being led down a dark lane, the tall stone buildings loomed above us in the early evening. I looked up to see a tall cloaked man carrying my baby sister. To this day I have no recollection of our lives before this moment. We entered an old stone building housing dozens of foundlings. We were well cared for, educated and provided for all our basic needs; but were not allowed to leave the building and its surrounding compound. This was my home for six years."

He paused and looked at Edward to see that the vampire was listening intently.

"As children we were always told of the 'choosing', the time where our carers would decide our future path. Soon after my sixteenth birthday I joined nine others of age and stood facing a large desk at which sat a tall dark man. He stood and without preamble, placed a hand one by one on each young person's shoulder, he would then murmur something to the nearby guardian and the young person was led through one of three doors."

The Maestro looked down at this hands which were unconsciously playing with the fabric of his trousers.

"After the eighth person was sent through the same door, the man sighed deeply; clearly he was unhappy with the results. Standing in front of the remaining girl beside me he touched her shoulder and his head lifted and eyebrow rose. Moving his hands, he gently cupped her face and kissed her forehead as if in benediction. A woman, who had been sitting against the wall, rose at the signal and gently led the young woman through one of the two unused doors. The man's eyes followed them his expression oddly sad.

This left me standing in the room, alone with the tall man. As the final participant I had been able to study him, noting that from his colouring and countenance he was not Italian but Mediterranean; possibly Spanish. He was attractive to the point of beautiful, with eyes that despite evidence to the contrary looked like they smiled often. As he moved in front of me I foolishly looked him in the eye. I drew a sharp breath, his red demon eyes staring at mine.

Dropping my gaze I knew I had been caught and shifting a panicked gaze to the door where most of my peers had been sent my skin suddenly went cold and clammy, my throat dry and I unconsciously stepped away from the man.

The man huffed and reached forward to grab me on the shoulder. He frowned and let me go to then clasp my face in a firm grasp, forcing me to look at him. His eyes flickered and his mouth turned up into a smile. Letting me go, he led me through the remaining unused door and away from my childhood.

After that things moved fast. I was set up in rooms in the main citadel and provided access to books and tutors. Upon my eighteenth birthday I was sent to Rome to study music and art and business at some of the most prestigious schools of the time. I studied hard, reporting back to my supervisors, receiving regular praise for my achievements. During this time I received letters from my sister within the communications from Volterra.

At the age of twenty I completed my studies and was summoned back to Volterra where I was advised I would have an audience with the masters at which time they would decide my future.

Now, I was not stupid. I knew there was something different about my masters; my first meeting with Eleazar at my choosing gave me much to ponder. However it is one thing to suspect your masters are not human; it is another to be told that you owe your life and future to the leaders of the vampire nation. I was given three days to recover from the shock after which I was ordered to return to the main chamber. Aro made it very clear that I owed them loyalty and service and that if I refused, my fate would be those of all of those at my choosing who went through the first door. I was informed that my service would be for 30 years, after which time I would be free to live what was left of my life.

"What of my sister?" I asked. Her 16th birthday was approaching and now I knew the truth of the choosing I was terrified for her. Two of the three doors lead to death, turning or food. The chance of her being suitable for service was a one in three chance. Aro had looked to Eleazar, who shook his head sadly.

I begged Aro for mercy. What could I do to protect my sister from the choosing? After some thought he proposed a deal, he would release my sister to my care, on the condition that I would provide the Volturi with a lifetime of service."

Edward's eyes widened at the thought of being asked to make such a bargain.

"As I said I was not stupid, I knew while studying in Rome that I might need to escape those very people that raised and supported me. During my wanderings around Rome I discovered a place where I could protect my sister. So the day after my Faustian bargain I escorted my sister to a small, almost unheard of, convent of cloistered nuns within Vatican City. As a result of a century old agreement between the Catholic Church and the Volturi, the nuns were protected from all evil, including vampires. My sister was a simple soul, not too quick of thought or wit, but loved reading and needle work and art and took well to the quiet companionship of the nuns who acted as a conduit for our letters, within which my sister assured me that her life was content and she could not ask for more.

I was now indentured to the Volturi for the remainder of my natural life. I was sent to some of the most wonderful places in the world, all the time performing tasks and errands for the Volturi. The older I got the more my roles became that of courier or provider of protection for other's, both human and vampire.

With the recent death of my sister, Aro magnanimously allowed me to retire. I was promised that my current position would be my last. I was placed here in order to look out for an unusual mated vampire couple who had caused the Volturi some 'issues' in the past."

Edward stared at the Volturi agency in both awe and horror, "So you were here to…?"

"Wait for you? Watch you? Report on your activities? Yes! However once you were here and the opportunity presented itself for more active involvement I was ordered to do so." The elder man's tone and thoughts were layered with deep regret and shame.

Edward was shocked. Was their every movement tracked? How could they not have known about this monitoring? Or had Carlisle known and hidden it from him? Did his mate's lack of trust in him run deeper that suspicions of infidelity? Edward shut down the train of thought. He refused to go there. He would explore such things if and when they got out of this disaster.

"If only we had not come to Oberlin..."

Only when Maestro shook in head did Edward realise he had spoken aloud.

"Edward, you and Carlisle are on a watch list; any likely place that you may settle is watched. Carlisle has always been the subject of a "see and report" order, but since your turning you have both been tracked; all possible facilities and locations watched."

Edward shook his head, "How could they ever manage that? There are far too many cities, with too many potential hospitals, to watch them all."

Maestro looked at him almost with pity. "Edward, there ARE a lot of us, both directly in the service of the Volturi and other unknowing humans paid for information. Also we weren't monitoring hospitals. Our orders have always been to watch music schools and suitable towns near large bodies of water."

Edward felt ill. He was not sure what upset him the most; the fact that they were the targets of such intensive surveillance, or that the Volturi knew exactly where to look.

"Aro wants you, and if necessary, Carlisle will be sacrificed to get you. To my shame as a result of my interference that is what has happened. Aro would prefer that you come to him by your own choice, having you leave Carlisle as a result of an irreconcilable difference or due to Carlisle exiling you from his presence. But this situation had developed into one even better than Aro could have imagined, Carlisle's present actions allows him to be determined an unfit sire and mate. As a result you can both be taken back to Volterra - Carlisle for 'punishment' and you for 'protection'."

Edward started to pace, pulling his hair in impotent frustration at being trapped in the room. "I will find him, take him away somewhere isolated and give him time to recover…"

"Err…" the hesitant sound and fleeting thought from the Maestro stopped him short.

"What? What else?" Edward's anger rose as he fought the desire to pick up the elderly man and shake him.

The Maestro sighed. "When Carlisle hurt you, I was afraid that he might kill you, or even Will. Limiting disclosure is one of our core duties so with that in mind I did the only thing I could do - I rang Italy directly and advised them of the situation. I was told to monitor the situation and advise if there were any major changes."

Edward gasped as the Maestro continued his voice tight with fear, "When you both disappeared I panicked. I sent an urgent message to Italy to be told that the guard were already on their way." He paused, his heart raced faster and a sheen of sweat gathered on his brow. He wiped his hands on his pants. "The guard are led by Aro himself."

Edward moaned in despair, burying his head in his hands "When will they arrive?" he whispered.

"I don't know" confessed the human. "Edward I am so sorry…"

Edward held up his hand, he could not hear it. He wanted to hate this man, tear him limb from limb. But he couldn't, the old man was a messenger at best, and a slave at worst. He was an instrument who had no choice other than to obey his master. Edward also recognized with some pain that had he and Carlisle been more open and honest, this weakness in their relationship would never have been able to be manipulated.

But here they were. He was recovering from starvation and abuse, while Carlisle's location and mental state were unknown. Their only hope, an elderly human bound to Aro, and who therefore could not be completely trusted.

"There has to be someone we can ask, someone who would know how much time we have." He started to pace the room.

"Well…"

Edward's eyes flickered to the old man. "Well what?"

The Maestro flinched at Edward's tone, but bravely continued.

"There is always Eleazar."

~*.*~

The Maestro watched as Edward spoke on the telephone in his office, being the only place where a telephone had been connected. The conversation was going far too fast for him to follow so he focused on siting in his chair and calming his frantic heart. In retrospect he was more than amazed and grateful that Edward had not killed him, or at least struck him.

He looked up to see Edward frowning at him; the other shook his head at the old man's thought, but then quickly returned to his conversation.

"Thank you, I am sure you will find out the outcome either way. Love to Carmen." He nodded and then hung up the receiver.

Edward turned to the Maestro, his shaking hands giving away his distress.

"Tomorrow, or the next day," he croaked, "They stopped with Eleazar briefly before continuing but the recent spell of fine weather…" he gestured to the shutters holding at bay the light of the soon to be setting sun, "…has slowed their travel."

His red eyes suddenly became panicked. "I have to find Carlisle, I have to find him now, take him away from here," his shaking became violent as the events of the past week, his starvation and what he soon may face crashed in on him.

The Maestro stood and moved towards the other. The vampire no longer appeared the confident being who had lived for near thirty years. Instead he was a lost and frightened seventeen year old. For the first time since the Maestro had known him, Edward's demeanour matched his physical appearance.

The Maestro grabbed Edward's hand in his own, trying not to flinch at the chill that permeated his arthritic joints.

Edward! Edward! The vampire looked up, his face crumpled in agony.

"We will find him. And when we do, I have a way of getting you both out of town. A way I devised for when I needed it. I saved my sister; I can help save you both too. Please trust me!"

Edward shakes started to still, as his mind clutched at the lifeline that was being offered them.

Still holding the vampires hand, the Maestro held the others gaze and continued.

"My only condition…you must take me with you."

AN: Maestro's name:- Nuncio = Messenger / Trovato = found or little foundling