FAREWELL

by strcrssdlvr

Edward leaves Bella and she struggles through many difficult situations that lead to a reunion with her lost family. But how long will that reunion last when old enemies come to claim vengeance? Will any of the Cullens survive?

21. SOMETHING WICKED THIS WAY COMES

Last time, we found out that Victoria has some sort of connection to the Volturi, and that her and Tanya were heading to Italy. Rosalie was on their trail, Alice and Jasper returned to the hospital, saying that—surprise, surprise—there were problems afoot. Bella was in the midst of changing and we found out that Emmalie has a gift and her thoughts can be heard by Edward. Moving right along…

21 ~ Something Wicked This Way Comes

"Every night
I have the strangest dreams
Runnin' through my head
And every night
I have the strangest feelin'…
Darkness came
And I gave my heart again
And that's forever
It was love and pain
I'll never be the same
But I can't surrender
Don't know what it is
I'm feelin' stranger and stranger
I live in my dreams
And I am feelin' danger…
Something wicked this way comes
Something wicked this way comes
Somebody help me
Make it throught the night
Somebody save me
'Cause somethin' ain't right
Things ain't what they seem
Can't wake up from this dream"

Something Wicked This Way Comes by Warlock

Friday, October 7 to Saturday October 8

Alice's POV

The entire trek back to the hospital, I had been flip-flopping between bouts of frustration and worry. Both emotions were the result of the knowledge that Victoria and Tanya were en route to Volterra with every intention of spilling the beans to the Volturi about my family's human addition, the result of such accusations, at the very least, being that the Volturi guard would launch a full-blown investigation into our family. We rarely discussed the Italians, but all of us were acutely aware that the future of our family—or, rather, the future of all of us remaining together in our close-knit coven—hinged on us leading lives of absolute caution and maintaining our status as ghosts below the Volturi radar. The moment we became blips on that radar, the royals would find cause to pay us a visit, and the long-dormant friendship once shared among Carlisle and the Italians would never be powerful enough to prevent them from carrying out whatever whim they happened to fancy.

The common preference among the Volturi was to exterminate any and all threats to their way of existence; breaking one of the few rules that governed our people was unforgiveable, no matter the reason behind the action. It was a known fact that the royals disapproved of our lifestyle, deeming it unnatural and disgusting, but as long as we were out of sight, we seemed to also be out of mind. We survived for decades, or, in Carlisle's case, centuries, living amongst the humans while maintaining the secrecy of our world. But then, somewhere along the line, we had all become careless, and now that recklessness was a few weeks away from biting us all in the ass. And there wasn't a damn thing any of us could do about it. Not that I would change the path we had all chosen to take, because the offense we had committed in the eyes of the Volturi—involving a human in the world of the immortals—was also the one thing that had finally resulted in the completion of our family. Bella was the part that each and every one of us, whether we chose to admit it or not, had been missing, and she had changed all of our lives for the better on so many levels. But her knowledge of our existence had also placed us all in grave danger.

Should the Volturi learn of our precarious situation, which seemed inevitable, there were only a few courses of action that they would potentially follow, each one a different means of leading to the same end. The first would be the simplest, the fastest—they would deem that we had all committed a forbidden act and we would be hunted down by the guard and burned. This had been known to happen on many occasions, but my gut instinct told me that the royals would be too curious to follow this path. It seemed likely that they would, instead, demand the sacrifice of Bella's life, eliminating the threat that she would spread the word of our existence to other humans. Their demand would be for one life, but, in the end, I knew it would claim us all, because none of us, especially Edward, would be capable of standing by and allowing Bella to be taken from our lives. We would fight and, once again, we would all perish. It was a harsh reality to face, death, but I could more easily accept that fate than the possibility that remained.

The third potential future initially appears deceptively optimistic. In it, we all had a good chance of survival. Bella would need to be changed and, by her shift to immortality, our slip-up with the rules could be overlooked, but our happiness would be short-lived as our fates eventually became worse than death. Aro, the royal who was renowned for his curiosity and obsession with "collecting" gifted members of our species, would be aware of our existence, of our abilities, and, although he may allow us to live out a few years uninterrupted, eventually, his obsession would consume him and he would come for us. There was no telling exactly who he would want for his collection; Edward and I, without a doubt, were shoo-ins, but Jasper's gift was less rare, and, in Aro's mind, less desirable. Edward's child, pray God that it survived today, would be extremely unique, and would, therefore, also reserve a place on Aro's most wanted list. Obviously, none of us would want to be separated and we would fight to stay together, but, somehow, our desires would no longer matter. Ultimately, our connections, our love, our lives would be fractured, and with so many pieces missing, our family would crumble. Outwardly, we would all be alive, but every feeling, every purpose that had previously given us life would be gone. In our minds, we would be dead.

I shuddered at the thought of being forced to live out the remainder of my days as a puppet in the elite Volturi guard; the fear of such a future was the main reason I had never before travelled to Italy. No amount of designer fashions or artistic masterpieces were going to lure me to within a hundred miles of the city I referred to in my mind as "the land of no return." I had heard stories from dozens of trusted resources, including Carlisle, of vampires that were offered positions in the guard, vehemently refused to accept them, and then days later were seen cloaked to the nines and waltzing around Volterra like preprogrammed Italian robots. No one outside the city walls knew for sure how the brainwashing occurred, but one fact was perfectly clear: whomever Aro wanted, Aro eventually received without reservation. I had many strengths, but fighting an unknown force that could alter personal desires and ultimately change lives was recognizably out of my league.

Try as I may, I could come up with no solutions to the problems we faced. Though I had not seen our futures beyond the arrival of the vicious harpies in Volterra and various bits and pieces of their conversation with Caius, our fates, in my mind, were as inevitable as if they had played from start to finish like a movie in my head. Gradually, I was forcing myself to accept what would come to pass, but I had no idea how to break the news to the rest of my family.

Rosalie's POV

It was liberating, in a way—having someone else to blame. I had known all along, of course, that Victoria had been responsible for what had happened to Emmett, but, for some reason, blaming her had not been enough. Hating Victoria after what she had done to Bella and, consequently, my brother, was natural. The escalation of that hatred came with such ease that it was insufficiently shock-inducing to completely alter the hurt I felt into a relentless anger. True, I was enraged, but it was overshadowed by the pain of my shattered heart. I desperately needed that pain to falter, to recede forever into the deep recesses of my mind before I was crushed beneath the weight of my emotions.

I had tried to find release by faulting my family for Emmett's death, but doing so had served to intensify my grief rather than extinguish it. Then I had learned about Tanya's involvement in the fight, and the hurt that had overwhelmed me quickly evaporated and was replaced by a rage so consuming that every cell in my body seemed to crackle with its murderous energy. With a renewed sense of purpose, my thoughts now focused and devoid of grief, I raced through the forest, following the scents of the two women that I had made it my undying quest to kill.

I broke free from the cover of trees and grudgingly slowed my pace to a brisk walk in order to avoid any unwelcome interference from the bustling humans that now surrounded me. Despite my anger and current desire for vengeful violence that had me lusting to run at full speed until I collided with the two evil women, I was a member of the Cullen family and harming innocent humans was unacceptable. If I were being honest with myself, though, it wasn't my sense of familial respect that held me in check as I allowed my senses to guide me toward Victoria and Tanya. It was the prospect of Emmett's disappointment in my actions should I hurt someone or draw attention to myself or our kind. Emmett had always been the reason for my attempts at bettering myself, the motivator that pushed me to weave together the powers of immortality with the remnants of goodness from my human life. Even though he was gone, I still feared his disapproval, and that fear, I knew, would always govern my decisions.

I walked among the oblivious humans, wondering yet again what the hell I was doing in an airport. It was extremely uncommon for nomads to travel by any means other than their own two feet because running was easier, more discreet and avoided temptations that could draw unwanted attention; it seemed out of character for Victoria to run away at all, let alone for her to do so by way of a commercial airliner. But the women would doubtfully have had time to set up a dummy trail to lead us astray, and I knew that, whatever their purpose, they had been here, standing in the same spot that I was currently occupying.

I stopped walking when I neared the loading gate for one of the Condor airlines terminals, casually sniffed the air, and then growled under my breath when I realized that I had hit a dead-end. The scents I had been following still swirled around me, but they no longer stemmed off in one specific direction, which indicated that the two demons had either stopped giving off an odor—not likely—or that they had passed through the doors that I was now staring at and boarded a plane. A glance at the list of recently departed flights did nothing more than further my confusion over where Victoria and Tanya were headed—the five flights that had left from this gate during the window of time that I estimated the two women could have been at the airport had destinations scattered throughout Europe, but none of the arrival cities specifically caught my attention.

I paced around the terminal, mulling over my limited options with disdain, for none of them were particularly appealing. The first I barely regarded as a possibility, because it involved me ceasing—albeit temporarily—my hunt for the women who killed my husband and returning to the hospital—and my pitying family. Even if delaying the search was a plausible option, which it certainly was not, I had no desire to lash out at my loved ones because of my anger, nor did I wish to revert to the grief-stricken basket case I had been hours ago when I was forced to witness the three loving pairs that now made up the rest of my family. I felt a surge of sympathy for Edward; only now could I truly comprehend the difficulty of being the seventh wheel in a family of happy couples. I hoped that, one day, I would be able to endure life with my parents and siblings again, but for now, my solitude was too raw; it would be best for me to remain alone until my wounds had been given time to heal.

Before I allowed my thoughts to wallow any deeper into my pit of sorrow, I imagined Victoria and Tanya watching the violet flames claim Emmett's life and my anger was restored. My next option for finding them was to catch the next available flight to one of the five possible cities in hopes that I would choose the correct place and be able to track the two of them down. While this choice certainly offered me an opportunity to get what I wanted, I wasn't very enthusiastic about the eighty percent chance that I would pick the wrong place, especially since I was already two steps behind them and, while I would spend an eternity seeking vengeance for Emmett's death if it was required, I didn't relish at the thought of a wild goose chase around the world that could carry on for centuries. I had always been one to seek instant gratification, and this situation was no different. I wanted Tanya and Victoria dead, and I wanted it now.

There was a possibility that Alice could sift through visions and determine where Victoria and Tanya could be found, but the likelihood of her immediately informing me of their whereabouts so that I could follow them was slim to none and I wasn't patient enough to wait for her to assemble a search and kill party. Especially since both Edward and Alice would most likely be preoccupied and delayed by Bella's condition. I had no doubts that Edward wanted Victoria to burn as much as I did, but the fact of the matter was that he had other things to concern himself with at the moment. He could wait for retribution. I could not.

I was seething on the inside, growing angrier and angrier with each passing second that I spent wasting my time in this godforsaken terminal. And then, when I passed by the information kiosk for the twentieth time, the air shifted slightly and I smelled it. The scent was faint, but familiar and traceable. It led me away from the gate and down the walkway, past the sickly-smelling fast-food restaurants and over-priced magazine vendors. As I reached the door with a placard that read "EMPLOYEES ONLY", the scent became slightly stronger and I felt the venom start to flow in my mouth and coat my razor-sharp teeth. I quickly glanced from side to side to ensure that no inquisitive human would make the poor choice of following me into the darkened room, and then I forcefully turned the knob, cracked open the door and slipped inside.

I flicked on the light and was, sadly, unsurprised at the sight that befell my eyes. The remains of two human women, as well as what I assumed to be their belongings, lay sprawled across the floor. The expressions on both of their faces were frozen, displaying the terror of their last moments of life for all who were unfortunate enough to witness them. The only evidence of injury was also as I had expected—two deep, crescent-shaped markings on each woman's neck, no more than a few drops of their blood spared to trickle to the floor. I prayed that Victoria had, at the very least, been quick and humane when she had killed these two women, though the idea did not sync with her nature of cruelty.

I forced myself to overcome the strong scent of blood in the surrounding air and began rummaging through the suitcases of the latest victims in Victoria's killing spree, praying that these women had lost their lives not only to satiate a vampire's thirst but also to provide the tickets that Tanya and Victoria would need to peacefully get wherever they were going. I was in no way grateful that the humans had perished, but at least if they could offer some indication of the plans my vampire prey had made, I might be able to claim justice for their unnecessary deaths as well. I carelessly tossed clothing and toiletries about the room, growing frustrated as no item offered hints as to their destination. I was on the verge of giving up when I unzipped a backpack with the embroidered initials "MJ" and, amidst the sweaters and an assortment of accessories for an expensive-looking digital camera, I found what I had been looking for.

It was nothing definitive; it could have easily been a source of leisure reading, indicating an appreciation of centuries-old architecture rather than a traveling destination. But for some reason, my intuition flickered and all of the cogs and gears in my mind seemed to effortlessly click into place. I knew where they were going, and I had a fairly good idea of why they were going there. The destination was not one that had been listed at the terminal, but now that I had been given time to think about it, the idea that they would be catching a connecting flight from a different European city into Italy was a reasonable one. Thanks to Brunelleschi's Dome, I was going to follow them to Florence and then, if my inkling was correct, to Volterra. And when I found them, I was going to extract my revenge so that I could find peace and make sure that the two malicious bitches could never again hurt my family.

Victoria's POV

I detested flying. If time had been of no consequence, I would have gladly run and swam my way back to my home. As it were, time was relevant. Every second that the despicable child drew breath, every moment that Edward Cullen was permitted to feel love and desire and hope was one moment too many. He needed to suffer as I had suffered and then he needed to die. They all did. And the sooner I could get back to Caius, apologize for the delay, and report that I had acquired the information he had requested all those months ago, the better. It still grated against my stone skin that I had botched my prior attempt at killing Isabella and eternally punishing Edward for James' death, but it would do me no good to think about that now. I may have failed once, but my failure had only served to increase my determination to succeed this next time. And with Caius' backing, success was inexorable. The Cullens would become ashes and I would return to my rightful place in the Volturi guard. The path of the future was so tangible that I could almost feel the dark, heavy cloak surrounding my shoulders once again.

It seemed almost ironic that the desire to rid myself of that destiny—one of servitude to the Volturi—was the reason I had embarked on the journey to Washington in the first place. I was desperate to lose myself in the joys of new love, away from the responsibilities I held within the walls of Volterra, so Caius and I had struck a deal: if I committed one final expedition on his behalf, he would grant his blessing for me, one of his prized fighters, to leave the guard with no strings attached. He was offering me a gift never before bestowed upon a member of the guard—the opportunity to live out the remainder of my existence wherever, and with whomever, I chose. Now I was returning to Italy, alone as far as my heart was concerned and utterly convinced that it had been my destiny all along to finish out my days in the city of my rebirth into the world of vampires.

I could recall very little about the time I spent in Italy as a human, although every so often a scent or a voice would draw forth images of men and women that I seemed on the brink of recognizing before they quickly returned to the abysmal hole that had swallowed up my human memories. What I did know was that I had been a part of one of the Volturi's ritualistic mass feedings at some point during the early nineteenth century. Out of the forty or so humans that had heedlessly walked into the domain of the thirsty vampires, I was the only spitfire who refused to go quickly and without one hell of a fight, and, as such, Caius, who had been entertained by my spirit and satiated by the blood of at least three other humans, had chosen to give me the reward of immortality rather than doom me to my death. Never once had I given him reason to regret his decision. From the day that my heart had stopped beating and the burning sensation had faded away, I had proven my worth and desire and ability to do battle. I was, in Caius' own flattering words, an unstoppable fighting machine. I lived as my sire's own personal warrior for nearly two centuries, and I did so happily. Until the day I met James.

From the very first moment my eyes had met his, a connection had sprung forth between us that had seemed, to my naïve mind, to join us in an indestructible union. In hindsight, I realized that the strength of emotions that I felt for James were not reciprocated in equal measure; while he unquestionably enjoyed my company, there were desires much stronger than the bond of mates that had steered him on the path of his life. Back then, though, I thought he had been created in this world for the sole purpose of making me whole.

It became clear early on that James settling down in Volterra with any amount of permanence was an impossibility. He was a tracker, a free spirit, driven by challenges and opposition, and I decided rather quickly that wherever he went, I was destined to follow. I knew that breaking free from the guard would be difficult, but, as with my fighting, my determination was unwavering, and when Caius presented the opportunity, I readily accepted it.

Perhaps I should have realized then that the absolute simplicity of the situation merely foreshadowed the imminent difficulty that my future would hold, but I chose to see my good fortune as further proof that I was destined to be with James for eternity. If I closed my eyes and cleared my mind, it was effortless to remember the feeling of giddiness that had assailed me as James and I left for the United States; it was easy to remember how arrogant I had been that we would perform the assigned task with ease and then be free to enjoy each other for the remainder of our lives. The mission, after all, had seemed simple enough—I was to locate a coven lead by a vampire named Carlisle Cullen and observe the actions of their group until such a time that I could provide evidence that they had broken a sacred law of our kind, thereby sentencing themselves to a burning end at the hands of my fellow guard members.

When my curious nature caused me to inquire as to the reasoning behind such a request, Caius sat me down and spent hours retelling the tale of the rarely-mentioned fourth Volturi brother who had left Italy to lead a life of peculiarity many years before I was born. As my sire spun the tale of his former friend, my eyes were opened to a world previously unknown to me. I found it astounding that there were vampires that willingly made the choice to fight the natural laws of the food chain and live in hiding amongst the humans, guided by an unhealthy sense of morality. As I saw it, we were predators and humans were prey; we needed to feed on them to survive and there was no right or wrong when it came to self preservation. Still, it was difficult for me to understand what would cause so much hatred between Caius and the Cullen vampire that he would desire to condemn his ex-friend to death.

So I stopped listening to merely Caius' words, and drank in his tones and expressions as well. It was blatantly obvious that Caius held a grudge against this unknown brother, this Carlisle, for leaving Italy against the wishes of the royal three, but that wasn't the true reason for his request. Yes, Caius wanted Carlisle—and his family—to pay for betraying his brothers, his duty, his very kind. But underlying that sense of betrayal was an all-too-familiar emotion to me—fear. I recognized the look in his eyes as one that I had seen in every opponent I had ever faced. It took me a while to decipher the foundation of his fear, but, in time, it struck me. I realized that Caius was afraid that Carlisle's way of life, whether it be a single decade or many centuries in the future, would appeal to the masses of our kind who, retaining an essence of humanity, would seek to live in peace with mankind. From that appeal would stem a mutiny, and from that mutiny the house of the Volturi would fall. It seemed laughable to me then, but now, as I had hours of nothing to do but sit and ponder and watch the clouds drift past the oval window of the airplane, the possibility of that future seemed more real than I could ever have imagined.

Which was precisely why the Cullens had to perish as soon as possible. I found myself wishing, once again, that James had just listened to me those many months ago, that he had, for once in his life, been able to resist the temptation of a challenge. If we had left Washington after our first contact with the Cullen coven and informed Caius that they had entrusted a human with our secret, I was certain the family of vegetarian vampires would have been nothing more than ashes as quickly as the Volturi could give the order for the guard to carry out their commands for justice.

Regrettably, James had been unable to overrule his strong desire to outwit the Cullens, and the rest, as they say, is our miserable history. Maybe it was wrong of me to let my personal feelings outweigh my sense of duty to my sire; perhaps I should have returned to Italy instead of helping James or, at the very least, as soon as he was killed by the Cullens. But my heart that had so rapidly swollen with love at his existence was even more suddenly filled with rage at his death, and I had decided that this was a fight I wanted to face on my own first. It is absolutely ridiculous that the first adversary I failed to kill was a human, although my record could likely be salvaged by the simple fact that Isabella hardly qualified as an adversary.

The memories of the way I had flung her body about like a rag doll brought a smile to my face, but my expression quickly soured as I glanced around the cabin and my eyes came to rest on Tanya's pensive form. Something about her had shifted since we had arrived at the airport and she had taken the call from her sister. I supposed it was to be expected, but I was thoroughly disappointed that my optimism over having finally found an apt pupil that could one day become my fighting partner was unfounded. She certainly had the energy to become a skilled warrior, but, unlike when we had first met, she lacked the drive, the inspiration. Sadly, I was rapidly coming to the conclusion that Tanya was a liability in dire need of handling. She had served me well in the fight against Emmett, and her mind could certainly accentuate my case against the Cullens should Aro take an interest in getting involved, but beyond that, she was useless, disposable. It was a pity, indeed, but it seemed as though Tanya would be the next casualty in this war.

Alice's POV

I approached the door to the operating room slowly, trying to work up the courage to plaster on a brave face for the reunion with my family members. I had been silent during our sprint back to the hospital, leaving Jasper with no more than emotional cues as to the future that awaited our family, and, thanks to his ignorance, he was able to brush my spiky hair aside, rub his thumb across my cheek and softly, honestly whisper, "Whatever it is, Alice, we'll figure it out. I promise." I looked at him, attempting a smile that fell short of believable, not knowing how to tell my husband that he shouldn't make promises that fate would not allow him to keep.

I took a deep breath and shoved the door open, noticing at once the sound of a changing heart. I glanced at Bella's still body and then moved my stare to the monitor that confirmed what my ears had heard—Bella was becoming one of us. Apparently, a lot had transpired here while we were gone, and under different circumstances, I might have grabbed Edward by the hand and demanded a full explanation for what had finally caused him to end his foolishness and change her. But this was not the time for discussions of things more trivial than our family's demise, so my eyes continued their trip around the room until they fell upon the cherubic child that my brother lovingly held in his arms. I couldn't help but smile a little bit as the small girl gazed at me in wonder, nor could I prevent the shock that assaulted me when I took in Edward's expression. For the first time in God knew how long, my brother was grinning; he was well and truly happy. For the briefest instant, I was overjoyed for him, but then reality intruded and my happiness crashed. Because I knew that the fact that Edward had been lifted to soaring heights would only serve to devastate him all the more when I informed him of what I had seen.

I didn't want my words to be the reason the new light in Edward's eyes burned out. I didn't want to be the bearer of bad tidings, the snuffer of our family's candle of hope. No, what I desperately wanted was to lie, to encourage his long overdue delight and allow my family to live out whatever time we had left in blissful ignorance. But lying was one of the few luxuries I had not been afforded, so I stared straight into his eyes and said, "Edward, we have a problem."

My brother's smile did not immediately disappear as I had expected; instead it merely became taut as his daughter—my perfect, beautiful, amazingly wonderful niece that should be getting showered with affection by her favorite aunt instead of being regarded with a glum expression—reached up to touch his cheek, capturing his undivided attention and causing him to whisper, "That's your Aunt Alice and your Uncle Jasper," as if he were responding to a question of who we were. While I was pondering the implications of that, Edward continued speaking to the tiny girl. "You'll get to say hello to them soon, but for right now I need you to go with," he paused for an instant like he were deliberating something in his mind, exchanged a look and a nod with the man who was apparently no longer his adversary—when did that happen?—and then finished, "your Uncle Conner while Daddy and Gramma and Grampa have a little chat with them, okay?" To my complete and utter disbelief, his daughter looked at him, nodded her head, and then touched her tiny palm to his lips. Less than a second passed before Edward's broad grin lit up the room once again and he said, "I love you, too, Emmalie." Emmalie. The name was perfect, a fitting memorial to our beloved brother and the happiness that he showered upon everyone he cared for.

All too soon, Conner brushed past us with Emmalie cradled protectively in his arms and then the five of us were left alone to have the discussion I had been dreading. Before I was given time to form the cursed words, though, Edward asked, "Alice, where is Rosalie?"

I sighed and my exhausted body slumped into the lone chair that existed inside the operating room before I answered, "She's fine, for now. We initially left because she went off after Tanya and Victoria after she learned that both of them were responsible for Emmett's death. But eventually she's going to hit a dead-end and be forced to regroup back here with us because the evil wenches that are hell-bent on messing up our lives are at it again." I couldn't help the scowl that twisted upon my face as I thought of the two women that I wished would just die already. My frustration mingled with a fatigue that was arguably the worst I had experienced in my immortal life was rapidly shifting my despair to sarcastic indifference. I was just so damn sick of this mess.

"What do you mean 'are at it again'?" Edward said frantically, his gaze flitting repeatedly from Bella's motionless face to the door through which his daughter had just exited, fear replacing his calm at the thought of the two most important pieces of his life being threatened yet again. "What are they planning?" The answer passed through my mind before it was even given the opportunity to exit my lips and I saw Edward's eyes widen in shock before, just as quickly, narrowing in fury. "They're going to the Volturi?" he asked, but I knew the question was rhetorical for he had seen just as much as I had in the vision that assaulted me in the woods.

"Yup," I said, giving the 'p' an ungraceful pop before I began massaging my temples to alleviate the sudden headache that was brewing. The reason behind the surfacing pain was irrelevant; I was more focused on the fact that it just figured that I would be the one vampire out of our entire species to be subjected to headaches. And that they would start, of all times, when I had more than enough other problems to deal with.

Carlisle chimed in at the mention of his former friends asking, "What are they planning to tell them? As of Bella's change today, we have broken no laws; the Volturi have no justification to attempt punishment." His worried tone counteracted his assured words, but I tried wholeheartedly to disregard his anxiety and find hope in his convictions. It was a vain attempt.

"That may be true, Carlisle," I responded, lifting my gaze to meet my father's eyes. "But Tanya and Victoria were unaware of the turn of events here today, so as far as the Volturi will be concerned, Edward, and by extension, all of us, will stand accused of bringing a human into the secret of our lives. Caius, at the very least, will demand that the accusation be explored and even if we are exonerated from the charge, the royals will undoubtedly infiltrate our lives to the full extent of their abilities now that we are no longer blocked from their realm of interest."

We were doomed. They would track us down, divide us and conquer. I would lose Jasper and Edward—poor Edward—he would lose Bella and Emmalie when we were forced to join the Volturi in Italy. Provided that Emmalie didn't first become their sick, demented rendition of a science experiment. My thoughts paused at Edward's furious growl—he had obviously been eavesdropping on my mind and I felt terrible. No matter what I did, lately, I always seemed to worsen the situation rather than make it better. I hated my visions. I hated them with the raging inferno of a thousand suns. I wanted to lobotomize my brain so that I wouldn't have to hurt anymore, feel anymore, see any—

But I did. Right then, I saw something else. A darkened room made of ebony stones lit only by the orange glow of firelight. The room was unfamiliar, but its blonde inhabitant was not. She was seated in a chair that was reminiscent of a medieval throne used by kings and queens of the dark ages. Standing before her was an attractive figure with long, jet-black hair and skin that appeared as translucent and thin as a fallen snowflake. His eyes were closed and his hands were cupping Rosalie's cheeks as she stared up at him, a look of smug satisfaction on her face. Moments passed without a word uttered between them until, suddenly, the mysterious man's eyes flickered open and he released his hold on my sister's face.

A menacing smile appeared on his lips as he quietly said, "Thank you, my dear. Your mind was most…enlightening. Now that you have served your purpose, you are free to go." He stared toward a darkened corner of the room as a tiny figure emerged and then continued, "Jane? Would you be so kind as to show Rosalie how much we appreciate her services?" He began to walk toward a doorway and the figure referred to as Jane shifted her gaze to Rosalie moments before my sister fell to the ground writhing in an agony I could not understand. I heard his evil voice utter one final order before the vision left my mind: "Move her to the fire and then come along, Jane. We have some pressing business to discuss with Caius. And Victoria."

No. No, no, no! There was no way Rosalie could have known where they were headed. I saw her coming back to us. I saw it. I saw—

Another vision, a rapid, blurred and shifting vision originating from a recently-made decision that was not yet set in stone. I narrowed my eyes at my brother, my whirlwind of energy returning full force as I realized just exactly what he was planning to do now that he had seen the most recent vision I hadn't had the time or the mental capacity to hide from him. I jabbed his chest repeatedly with my index finger as I vehemently stated, "Edward—no. Just get that absurd notion out of your head right this instant. There is no way in hell I'm going to let you go through with it." I knew he felt my pokes, but he wasn't looking at me anymore. Instead, he was looking through me, gazing at the healing face of his beloved Bella with a look of remorse. And in that instant, I knew. His mind was already made up. And just like the last time that I had warned him against following his irrational ideas, I was powerless to prevent him from following through with his decision.

But that didn't mean that I wasn't going to try to stop him anyway.