18. WHY HADN'T I JUST RUN AWAY?

It was such a convincing little speech; I almost didn't notice how blatantly obvious the manipulation was. It was battle day, and Riley was up on her soapbox again.

"There are so many things you don't know about vampires," Riley started. "And some of those things don't make much sense. This will be one of those things you won't understand, or even believe at first."

She deliberated a minute. "Four times a year… the sun shines at a specific, indirect angle. During that one day every few months, we can be outside during the day without being fried."

Everyone seemed to stop breathing. It was like Riley was talking to a bunch of statues.

"One of those days is beginning now. The sun rising today won't hurt any of us. And our enemies don't know that we know that. We're going to take this opportunity for the ambush."

So Riley knew about the sun all along… Or she didn't and was dumb enough to believe this 'four days' crap our creator had told her.

"I know, I know… The thought of is scary," Riley said to the statues. "This is the reason you're all still alive. You got home on time, you didn't make mistakes… But I do expect you to follow me out."

Her eyes watched the room, waiting for protests.

"Watch me," she said. "And you will see that it doesn't hurt. But don't freak when you see how I look in the sun. It will be intense, but it won't hurt you in any way."

She started up the stairs.

"Riley, can't we just wait until—" Kyle began.

"Just pay attention," Riley said. "This gives us the best advantage."

Riley opened the basement door and walked into the kitchen. There was no light in there, but everyone still shied away from the open doorway.

I felt Florence's eyes on me. I looked at her, and she was staring back at me urgently as if she wanted to take off. But there was nowhere she could go.

"It's okay," I whispered silently. "She's not making this up."

"You trust her?" she mouthed back at me.

"No way."

Florence raised an eyebrow and relaxed slightly.

"Okay, guys. I'm going out. You don't have to be afraid today. Trust me."

The light burst into the basement when the door opened, magnified by Riley's skin. The reflections danced along the walls.

Hissing and snarling erupted from all around me. People recoiled away from the light.

"Relax…" Riley called down to us. "I feel fine. No pain at all. Come and see. That's an order."

No one moved any closer to the door. Everyone looked terrified, and I realized now how silly I had looked to Deena.

"You know," Riley mused from above. "I'm curious to see who is the bravest of all you guys. I have a good idea who will be the first person through that door."

I rolled my eyes. Subtle.

"You can hear me. You know I'm not on fire. Don't be chicken shit! You're a vampire. Act like one!"

Still, no one could go any farther.

"Oh, for the love of Christ," Riley murmured. She stepped back in the door. "Look at me! I'm fine. Seriously! C'mere, Branden."

I slowly walked toward her, and she reached out and grabbed me, pulling me through the doorway. The light brightened everyone in the house when I was in the sun.

"Tell them, Branden," Riley ordered.

"It's okay, guys," I said, trying to act surprised.

Riley grabbed Katrina next. She flinched when the light hit her face.

"Tell them!"

"I'm okay, Rachel!" she called down. "Whoa… I'm all shiny! This is crazy!" She laughed.

That did it for Rachel. She started marching up the stairs, and she was soon up here glistening and laughing with Katrina.

It continued slowly, in a one-by-one fashion. Riley got impatient.

When Florence came outside, she looked at me warily. "You knew about this?" she mouthed.

I nodded.

We looked like a freak show. Shining, disco-ball vampires in the front yard. Florence and I stood a little bit separately from the rest. Everyone looked each other over, marveling at the shimmering. It took everyone a moment to realize this was it. It was time. They got quieter and fiercer then.

They seemed eager now. Being encouraged to rip and burn was almost as exciting to them as hunting.

Riley focused on the strategy she'd devised over the past three days. We would pinpoint the yellow-eyes' scent and then divide into two groups and come from opposite angles.

Riley began speaking again. "We leave now. You're strong, and you're ready. You're thirsty for it. You can feel the burn!"

And she was right. Everyone was full from feeding last night, but the bloodlust for the kill was showing up in everyone's eyes.

"They will be coming in slowly from the south," Riley said. "He has been monitoring them, so I will know where they are. He will meet us there with Deena. Then we will hit them like a tsunami. And then we will celebrate. Everyone, get focused!"

"We're ready!" Rachel shouted. Everyone screamed in assent like warriors.

"Let's take them down, kids!"

Florence didn't move, so I stayed with her. But I knew if we were going to get to Deena and pull her away before the fight, I would need to be near the front of the attack. I looked at them anxiously. I was still younger than a lot of them… faster.

"Riley won't be able to think of me for about twenty minutes or so," Florence told me. "I've been gauging the time. Even a good distance away, she'll feel sick if she tries to remember me."

"Really? That's cool."

Florence smiled. "I've been practicing. I can make myself totally invisible now. No one can look at me if I don't want them to."

"I've noticed," I said. "You're not going?"

Florence shook her head. "Of course not. It's obvious we're not being told what we need to know. I won't be someone's pawn."

So Florence had figured it all out on her own.

"I was going to run off sooner," she said. "But then I wanted to speak with you before I did, and there hasn't been a good time."

"I wanted to talk to you as well," I said. "I thought you should know that Riley's been lying the whole time about the sun. Those of us who have disappeared, like Shelly and Steve. They figured it out. And there's a lot more politics going on with this fight than she's leading on."

"Huh, I'm not surprised. I'm out. I'm going off on my own, to explore the world. Or you could come with me if you wanted. No one will follow us."

I shook my head. "Thanks, but I have to get to Deena."

"Well, you can always try to find me later. Sometimes numbers come in handy. Bring her with you."

"Yes," I agreed. "I will definitely do that. Where should I go?"

She thought about it for a moment. "Vancouver… at Riley Park. I'll wait there for twenty-four hours. But if you don't show, I'm gone. Good luck, Branden."

"Thanks, Florence! Good luck to you, too!"

I was already running.

I sprinted after the others, following the scent. I flew along faster than I'd ever run before. I was lucky that they must have paused for something… Probably for Riley to yell at them. Because I caught up with them faster than I should have.

I tried to slide into the group without drawing attention, but I saw Riley's head flip around once to zone in on me. Did she assume Florence was with me?

It wasn't five minutes later when everything changed.

Rachel caught the scent. With a wild growl, she was off. Riley had everyone so worked up that it only took the tiniest spark to set off an explosion. The others caught the scent too, and we were an army. It was a race for the kill.

Riley shouted orders. "Kyle, go around! Move around! Split off! John! Break off!" Her whole plan of the two-piece ambush was falling apart as we watched.

Riley sped up to the leading group and grabbed Seth's shoulder. "Go around!" she shouted. They came out of their focus long enough to realize they were supposed to be following strategy. Idiots.

"This way! Faster! I'm spear point with Rachel!"

I hesitated, still running forward. I didn't want to be any part of this 'spear point,' but Kyle's team was already running their way. I sprinted after Riley.

Riley ran ahead to Rachel's team. "I've got to help Kyle first. I'll meet you there!"

I jerked to a stop, frozen with uncertainty.

"Branden, I thought you were with Kyle."

I didn't respond.

"Are you… leaving us?" I asked.

Riley's face changed. It was like I could see her eyes shifting through the tactics.

"I'm worried, Branden. I told you that He was going to meet us and help, but I haven't seen Him. Something's wrong. I have to find Him."

"But Rachel will get there before you can find Him," I pointed out.

"I've gotta find out what's going on," she said. She actually sounded desperate. "I need Him."

"But the others…"

"Branden, I have to go find Him. Now! There are enough of you to overwhelm them. I'll get back as soon as I can."

I hesitated, looking back the way we'd come.

"Deena's down there, Bran," Riley said urgently. "She'll be in the first attack. Didn't you catch her scent back there? Did you not get close enough?"

I shook my head, totally confused.

"She's gotta be with Rachel by now. If you hurry, you can help her get out alive."

We stared at each other intensely for a long moment. Then I looked south at Rachel's path.

"Good boy," Riley said. "I'll go find him, and I will be back to help. You guys have got this! It will probably be over by the time you get there!"

She took off in a direction perpendicular to our original path. Riley never had any intention of fighting with us. Neither did He. She was lying to the end. She would go hide with Him and let us do all the work for them.

I still felt like I had no choice. I went south in a flat-out sprint again. I had to get to Deena. I would drag her away with me if I had to. There was no reason to help Riley anymore.

I found Rachel's scent, but not Deena's. Was I going too fast?

I didn't have much time to think about why I couldn't find her scent, because that's when the screeching and screaming and snarling started. And I knew the fight was happening. I ran faster. Maybe I could still save her.

I smelled the smoke. Already? The thick, sweet scent of burning vampire carried back to me in the wind. The sound of mayhem grew louder. Maybe they were almost done. Would I find our coven victorious and Deena waiting for me?

I dashed through a heavy blanket of smoke only to find myself out of the forest in a grassy field.

I hopped over a rock, only to realize as I flew past it that it was a headless torso.

My eyes scanned the field. There were pieces of bodies everywhere, and a huge bonfire smoking purple into the sunny sky. Out from under the billowing haze, I could see the glittering bodies darting and grappling as the sound of vampires being torn apart went on and on.

I looked for one thing only: Deena's black hair. No one I could see had hair that dark. There was one huge vampire girl with brown hair that was almost black, but she was too big, and I watched as the unfamiliar girl tore Katrina's head off and pitched it into the fire. Then she leaped onto someone's back. Was that John?

I scanned quickly again. I felt horribly exposed. I took in the faces. There weren't really enough vampires here, even counting those that were down. There must have been a lot of them torched already. Most of the vampires still standing were strangers. A blond vampire glanced at me, and her eyes flashed gold in the sunlight.

We were losing. Badly.

I started to back away toward the trees, still looking for Deena. She wasn't here. There was no sign she had ever been here. No scent in the mix of all our side and the strangers. I even looked at the pieces. I would have recognized just a finger.

I turned and really made a break for the trees, suddenly aware that Riley had most likely been lying about Deena.

And that probably meant she was already dead. I was about to die, too. I should have known it from the moment she hadn't come back with Riley.

Then I recalled Riley's words that night. 'I will take you to him myself and hold you down while he tears off your legs and arms and slowly burns off every last one of your fingers, ears, lips, tongue, one by one… and finally, he will have your head.'

Such a specifically detailed description… I realized now this was because she was describing something she had just seen. What happened to Deena. That's why her whole attitude changed that night. She'd lost trust in her favorite.

I was a few feet into the trees when a force like a wrecking ball hit me from behind and knocked me down.

An arm slipped under my chin.

"Please!" I cried out. And what I meant was, 'Please kill me quickly.'

And the arm hesitated. I didn't fight it, though my instincts urged me to bite and tear and rip the arm apart. But I knew I'd never win. Another one would just finish me off.

Riley lied about these 'weak' vampires, too. We'd never had a chance. And with Deena gone, that really sucked out whatever fight was left in me. She could have my head for all I cared.

The arm spun me around, and the blond vampire was staring intensely at me, her body ready to spring. She looked very capable, much more experienced than even Riley. But she didn't look crazy like Rachel or Kyle. She looked totally in control.

"Please," I said again. "I don't want to fight."

She still held herself in a ready position, her face changed. Though, she looked at me in a way I couldn't understand. Empathy? Pity, at least.

"Neither do I, child," she said in a calm, mother-like voice. "We are only defending ourselves."

There was such an honesty in her voice, I felt… guilty. Maybe this coven had never planned to attack us at all. How could I believe any part of what I'd been told? These strange, golden-golden eyed vampires were probably the 'threat' that never was and never would be.

"We didn't know," I explained. I felt ashamed. "Riley lied. I'm so sorry."

She listened for a moment, and I realized that the battlefield was quiet. It was over.

If I'd been in any doubt of who the winner was, that doubt was gone now. A man with wavy brown hair and the same golden eyes approached us. He looked just as calm.

"Carine?" he asked in a confused voice as he stared at me.

"He doesn't want to fight," she told him.

The man touched her arm. "He's so frightened, Carine. Shouldn't we…"

The blonde, Carine, glanced back at him and then straightened out of her crouch. But she still looked wary.

"Don't worry. We have no wish to harm you," the man said to me. He had a soft, caring voice. "We didn't want any of this."

"I'm sorry," I whispered.

I couldn't make sense of all the mess in my head. Deena was probably dead, and that was the devastating thing. Other than that, the fight was over, and everyone else was dead, too. And here were my 'enemies' speaking to me like they wanted to be my friend.

"Child," Carine said, "will you surrender to us?"

"Yes," I resigned.

She held out her hand. "Come, then. Let our family regroup for a moment, then we will have some questions for you. If you are totally honest with us, you have nothing to be afraid of."

I got up slowly, making no movement that would be considered threatening.

"Carine?" a female voice asked.

And then another one of the yellow eyes joined us. Any sort of safety I'd felt vanished when I saw her. She was a blonde, like the first, but taller and leaner. Her skin was covered in scars, tons of which were concentrated on her neck and face. A few were fresh from today, but most were old. She'd been in more fights than any of my idiots ever had. And she'd never lost.

As soon as she saw me, she coiled to spring.

"Jessamine!" Carine shouted.

Jessamine pulled up short and stared in disbelief at Carine. "What's going on?"

"He has surrendered."

"Carine, I…" She hesitated for a moment. "I'm sorry, but we can't. When the Volturi come, we can't be associated with any of these newborns."

I didn't understand what she was saying, but I got that she wanted to kill me.

"Jess, he's only a child," the man protested. "We can't just murder him without him provoking us."

It was strange to hear him speak like we were people, and murder was a bad thing. An avoidable thing.

"It's our family on the line here, Earnest. We can't afford to have them think we broke this rule."

The man, Earnest, walked between Jessamine and me.

"No. I won't stand for it."

Carine looked at me anxiously. I could see that she cared a lot for this man. I would have looked the same way at Deena. I tried to look docile.

"Jess, I think we have to take the chance," Carine said.

She led me closer to the flames, so close I could feel the smoke against my skin.

"Sit here. Don't make a single move," the woman commanded.

I kept very still and tried to look harmless, but I could feel the girl's glare on me, and it made me feel agitated.

And then there was screaming somewhere across the field.

I heard shouting and a strange, savage howling. It was loud, and there was a lot of it. I couldn't imagine how a face would have to contort to create such a noise. These yellow-eyed vampires were so different.

The sound of wolf-like yelping tapered off until it was just one voice, one agonized, inhuman yowling that made me grit my teeth. I imagined Deena screaming as she was ripped apart. I covered my ears.

I heard Carine rush toward the screaming, through the smoke that obscured them from view. "Please let me take a look. Please let me help." I didn't hear anyone arguing with her, but for some reason, it sounded like she was losing a dispute.

And then I listened harder. There were a dozen deep, thumping noises. Almost like… heartbeats. But definitely not human hearts. I sniffed, but the wind was at my back. All I could smell was the smoke.

It was quieter for a few minutes. I heard some low voices, Carine and Earnest among them, but others I didn't know. I wished I could see. The blindness from all the smoke of the fire next to me irritated me badly.

There was one voice, louder than the rest that I could hear most easily. "Another five minutes," he said.

I tried to make sense of this.

Close by, Jessamine was frowning. Her teeth were gritted together as she looked at me… frightened. Not like, scared of me, but like she was scared because of me. I remembered what she said about 'Volturi.' I wondered what a Volturi was. What would a scarred up, dangerous vampire be afraid of?

I was starting to hope those black-cloaked vampires had something to do with it, and that they'd catch up to Riley and make her suffer.

A vampire with beautiful, almost red hair met my eyes with a fierce warning glare, and I knew I would die if I tried anything on this girl.

My eyes popped. She was the most beautiful vampire I'd ever seen. Even more beautiful than Riley.

"They are coming to the north end of the clearing now," the shortest guy said.

They? I glanced to the north, but all I could see was the smoke. Was he talking about Riley and the creator? I felt the panic rush through me, but then I relaxed. There was no way He and Riley could stand against these vampires.

Or did he mean this mysterious Volturi?

Then Carine and Jessamine backed away from the fire, and from me, joining ranks with the others. There were staring through the smoke expectantly, I huddled tighter to the smoke in spite of the flames. Should I make a run for it? Where would I go?

"Hmm," a dead voice said from behind the smoke.

In that one syllable, I knew exactly who this was. I wanted to bolt.

It was the dark-cloaks after all.

What did that mean? Would another battle begin now? I knew that they'd wanted my creator to succeed in his plans. But he had clearly failed. Did that mean they would kill them?

The dark-cloaks ghosted through the smoke into view. None of them looked in my direction. I held absolutely still.

There were four of them, the same as before. There was something to them more than what I could see. I could feel it. These were punishers. They didn't come to seek and destroy.

"Welcome, Jasen," said the red-haired girl.

So they knew each other. The redhead's voice was not friendly, but it wasn't weak like my creator's had been. Her voice was cold but polite. Were the dark cloaks the Volturi then?

The small vampire boy who led the group, Jasen, slowly scanned across the seven yellow eyes, and then slowly turned toward me. I glimpsed his face for the first time. He was younger than me but much older, too, I guessed. His eyes were the color of dark red roses. I put my head down.

"I don't get it." Jasen's dead voice betrayed a hint of annoyance.

"He surrendered," the redhead explained.

"Surrendered?" Jasen snapped.

I peeked up to see the cloaks exchanging glances.

"Carine gave him the option," the redhead said. She seemed to be the spokesperson for the yellow eyes.

"There are no options for those who break the rules," Jasen said.

I felt like ice. But for some reason, I couldn't feel the panic I should have. It was like I'd been stripped of all emotion. I guess death was just inevitable now.

"That's in your hands," Carine said in a soft voice. "As long as he was willing to stop his attack on us, I saw no need to destroy him. He was never taught."

Though the words were neutral, I almost thought she was pleading for me.

"That is irrelevant," Jasen confirmed.

"As you wish."

"Sulpicia hoped that we would get far enough west to see you, Carine," he said. "She sends her regards."

"I would appreciate it if you would convey mine to her," she answered.

Jasen smiled. "Certainly." Then he looked at me again, and the corners of his mouth were still pointed up in a smile. "It appears the Cullens have done our work for us today. Just out of curiosity, how many of you were there? You left quite a debacle in Seattle."

I was right. His job was punishment. And if there were punishers, there had to be rules. Riley and the creator had been afraid, but not exactly surprised by the arrival of these Volturi vampires. They knew about the laws, and they knew they were breaking them. Why hadn't they told us?

And there were more Volturi than just these four. Probably a lot more, I guessed.

Carine answered the question for me. "Eighteen, including this one."

"Eighteen?" Jasen repeated. He sounded surprised.

"All brand new," Carine said. "They were unskilled."

Unskilled, stupid, uninformed… thanks to Riley.

"All?" Jasen asked. "Then who was the creator?"

As if they hadn't already been introduced. This Jasen was a bigger liar than Riley.

"His name is Victor," the redhead answered.

How did she know that when I didn't? I remembered that Riley had said there was a mind reader in this group. Was that how they knew everything?

"And where is he now?"

"He evaded us when he realized his attack was unsuccessful," the redhead answered.

Jasen looked at me. "You there. Your name?"

I was dead anyway, according to him, so why give him anything he wanted? I just glared at him.

Jasen smiled at me with a bright, happy smile like an innocent child.

And suddenly, I was on fire.

I'd gone back to the night Riley had found me. The same fire was in every cell of my body again, coursing through my veins and turning my skin to ash. It felt like I'd been thrown into the bonfire whole. It was the worst agony imaginable. I could barely hear myself screaming the pain was so intense in my ears.

"Your name!" Jasen said again, and as he spoke the fire disappeared instantaneously. It was gone like I'd only imagined it. I looked at my arms, expecting to find charred limbs. Nothing was wrong with them.

"Branden," I said as fast as I could, still gasping from the pain that was gone.

Jasen smiled again, and the fire was everywhere. Where was it coming from? How much pain would it take before I died of it? The screams didn't even feel like they were coming from me anymore. Why couldn't someone just rip my head off? Carine was kind enough for that, wasn't she? Someone needed to make this stop.

"He'll tell you anything you want to know!" Earnest pleaded. "You don't have to do that."

The pain vanished like Jasen had turned off a pain switch. I was face down on the ground, panting like I needed the air.

"Oh, I know," I heard the boy say cheerfully. "Branden?"

I shuddered when he said my name. "Is this story true?" he asked. "Were there eighteen of you?"

The words rushed out of my mouth. "Twenty-two or so, I don't know! Some killed each other before we got here. Some went missing."

I waited for the pain to hit me again for not having a better answer, but it didn't come.

"And this Victor, did he create you?"

"I think so," I admitted. "Riley never said his name. I didn't see anything that night… It was all so dark, and it hurt! She didn't want us to think of him. She said our thoughts weren't safe."

Jasen glanced at the redhead, then looked at me again.

"Tell me about this Riley," Jasen said. "Why did she bring you here?"

I recited all of Riley's lies as quickly as I could. "Riley told us that we had to destroy some yellow-eyed vampires who wanted to kill us. She said it would be easy, and that Seattle would be ours once they were gone."

"Well, it looks like Riley was wrong about the easy part," Jasen laughed. "And where is Riley now?"

The redhead tilted her head back in the direction of the mountain behind her. A small, black-smoke pillar stood out against the snow. She'd killed her.

I was starting to like this girl a lot more now.

It seemed like Jasen was pleased with my story. And I realized it was because he now knew Riley had kept us in the dark. That I shouldn't know about their visit the other night. Which would keep that conversation a secret from the yellow-eyes. Something he didn't want them to know. He secretly hated them. But wouldn't the mind reader know that?

"So you believe you are innocent?" Jasen asked me.

"That one said I wouldn't be hurt if I stopped." I pointed at Carine.

"Ah, but that wasn't her gift to offer…" He sounded like he was enjoying himself. "Broken rules demand consequence."

Jasen looked at Carine. "Are you sure you got them all?"

Carine nodded. "We split up like they did."

"I can't deny that I'm impressed," Jasen mused. "It isn't often a coven escapes an assault of this magnitude. Especially not fully intact. Do you know the motive behind it? Such extreme behavior."

"Vengeance," the redhead told him. "Victor's mate tried to kill mine, and we took her out."

Seriously? That was it? All for avenging the murder of one person?

Jasen laughed happily. "Yes, Sulpicia was quite pleased to hear about your new member. She sends her congratulations."

The redhead nodded once.

"But he is not with you today?" Jasen smiled.

"He's new," the redhead said quickly. "I wanted him to sit this one out."

Jasen nodded. "Pity. I would have loved to have met the new Cullen. Well, it appears there is nothing left for us to do," he said in his monotone. "It isn't often we're rendered unnecessary. It seems we missed the most entertaining of fights."

"Yes," said the redhead. "It's a shame you hadn't arrived just ten minutes earlier. Perhaps you would have fulfilled your duties."

I fought a smile. So the redhead was the mind reader. Little Jasen wasn't going to get away with it.

"Yes. Quite a pity how things turned out…" There was a warning glance in Jasen's eyes.

Then he turned back to me. "Ohhh, yes… the child."

I realized at this moment that my time had run out.

At least Riley had met her demise too. It was some small consolation for it all.

I silently thanked the mind reader in my head.

"Felizia?" Jasen said lazily.

"Wait!" the mind reader said.

"We could explain the rules to this young one. He doesn't seem unwilling to learn. He didn't know what he was doing. This isn't his fault."

"Of course," Carine said eagerly. "We would certainly be glad to take responsibility for Branden."

Jasen's face looked like he was expecting them to admit they were joking. But they weren't joking.

I couldn't believe it either. How could these vampires be so kind and compassionate to a total stranger?

"I doubt that," Jasen sighed. "I should remind you that the rules state the perpetrator, as well as those responsible for him, shall be punished alike. We don't make exceptions. Don't worry, though. We have Alexandra's mercy."

Carine was silent for a moment. "As you wish."

"It was nice to meet you, Carine… I'd thought Sulpicia was exaggerating. Well, until we meet again…"

This would be the end for me. But I didn't feel afraid. My only regret was not running off with Florence. There was so much I could have told her. Things she needed to know. The world was full of danger and politics and dirty cops. But would they be able to find her? Could they even look at her? Then I realized the mind reader would know what I was thinking.

Please don't let them find her.

"Take care of that, sister," Jasen said indifferently, nodding in my direction. "I want to go home."

One of the Volturi cloaks held her hands forward, and a wispy, grey smoke crept outward from them, swirling its way towards me.

Before it could reach me, I closed my eyes.

Then there was nothing.

-END OF PART TWO-