Everything belongs to Stephanie Meyers.
Authors note: Well, it's been a long time since I've updated this story. The good new is I've finished this book and a few chapters of the last one. I'm posting the rest of book 3 today and the few chapters I have of book 4 next week. I'm not sure who's still reading, but if your still out there, thank you very much for sticking around.
Another piece of news I have is that I am publishing my own novel soon and when that happens I'll be sure to post an announcement to let anyone interested in reading it where it will be available.
Now, on with the story.
CHAPTER 25 - FEAR
Quickly moving into action, I was all business still having a job to finish. Swiftly dismembering the headless corpse. Piling the twitching limbs and covering them with dry pine. Darting into the forest after Seth. We began the cleanup. Both Seth and I began picking up every piece without a word said.
Returning to the camp with all the parts I could find, Seth had the torso in his mouth. Adding the parts to the pile, I pulled a sliver lighter from my pocket. Flipping open the butane lighter I held the flame to the dry tinder. It caught at once; long tongues of orange fire licked rapidly across the pyre.
"Get every piece," I said softly to Seth.
Together, Seth and I scoured the campsite, tossing small lumps of white stone into the blaze. Seth handled the pieces with his teeth. Searching the entire area we needed every piece, nothing could be left behind. Rule number one for vampires was to leave no witnesses and most importantly… no evidence.
My eyes remained on my work, without glancing Bella's way, knowing she would be afraid of me. After witnessing the worst monster I could ever be, she had to be terrified. Wanting to go to her… I was unable… the clean became priority one.
When we were done, and the raging fire was sending a pillar of choking purple toward the sky. The thick smoke covered the sky above us, looking more solid that it should. The smell, like burning incense, was unpleasant. It was heavy, too strong.
Seth made a snickering sound again, deep in his chest, the stench being very uncomfortable for him. His reluctance to leave provided me a glimpse into the loyalty that bound the wolves. Nothing would pull him away from his duty to protect.
A smile flickered across my tense face.
Stretching out my arm, my hand curled into a fist. Seth grinned, revealing the long row of dagger teeth, and bumped his nose against my hand.
"Nice teamwork," I murmured, with a smile.
Seth coughed a laugh. That was great! Seth thought.
Taking a deep breath I turned slowly to face Bella, finally.
Wry and with extreme exaggeration, I moved toward her, slowly.
"Bella, love," I said, in the softest tone I was capable, holding up my hands, palms forward. Approaching as gradually as I was capable of.
"Bella, can you drop the rock, please? Carefully. Don't hurt yourself."
Stunned, she glared at me, confusion washing over her. She refused to say anything and she hadn't moved for a moment.
Hesitating, a few feet from her, my hands still in the air, anxiety spread throughout me. Shock… she was definitely in shock and my approach needed to be slower.
She hadn't moved… she hadn't spoken… she was undeniably traumatized. I was terrified to the core, wanting to rush to her, pull her into the safety of my arms, but was unable to. Finally, she opened her hand, the rock clattering to the ground, while her hand stayed frozen in the same position.
I relaxed slightly when her hands were empty, but still couldn't move. Horrified that she had witnessed the monster in me, there were no words that could explain this. Seeing that monster fully emerged left no doubt who I truly was. How would I explain myself? How could I expect her to ever understand what I was?
"You don't have to be afraid, Bella," I murmured. "You're safe. I won't hurt you."
She appeared more confused and unresponsive. What was she thinking? With no response I was unsure, she gave me no indication with her actions. I wish she would just say something… anything.
"It's going to be all right, Bella. I know you're frightened now, but it's over. No one is going to hurt you. I won't touch you. I won't hurt you," I said again.
Her eyes blinked furiously, and she finally found her voice. "Why do you keep saying that?"
She took an unsteady step toward me, leaning away from her advance, I was uncertain of touching her. I was confused by her sudden movement, her uncertain feelings, what she was thinking. Surely she was horror-struck with my actions here today.
"What's wrong?" she whispered. "What do you mean?"
"Are you…," confusion suddenly washed over me. "…aren't you afraid of me?"
After witnessing what she just had, seeing the monster I truly was, had to make her afraid of me. How could she not be? That would have frightened me. My actions here today would've frightened anybody who was sane, but then again, she had already proven that she had no self-preservation. Maybe she was insane? Her response was confusing me.
"Afraid of you? Why?"
She staggered forward another step, tripping over nothing. My arms shot out on instinct to catch her. She buried her face in my chest and began to sob.
"Bella, Bella, I'm so sorry. It's over, it's over."
I was attempting to restore her confidence in me. My actions were monstrous, but I had regained control. There was no longer danger here, and I needed her to see that.
"I'm fine," she gasped. "I'm okay. I'm just. Freaking out. Give me. A minute."
My arms tightened around her. "I'm so sorry," I murmured again and again.
She clung to me until she could breathe, and then she was kissing me –my chest, my shoulder, and my neck –every part of me that she could reach.
"Are you okay?" she demanded between kisses. "Did she hurt you at all?"
Here was the reason I loved her as I had, always worrying about the wrong things. She was scared for me when she should be scared of me. Worrying about my well-being instead of her own. I was never the one in danger, only her. With my abilities along with my newest ally, concern for myself was obsolete… my only concern was her safety.
"I am absolutely fine," I promised, burying my face in her hair.
"Seth?"
I laughed. "More than fine. Very pleased with himself, in fact."
"The others? Alice, Esme? The wolves?"
"All fine. It's over there, too. It went just as smoothly as I promised. We got the worst of it here."
She thought about that… her mind far away. Everything at the clearing had gone as well as we expected. There were no casualties on our part, only theirs. My family and the wolves were very pleased with themselves, too. There was a very unusual form of celebration happening there at the moment. Everyone was congratulating each other, a strange emotion thick in the air.
Pressing my lips softly in Bella's hair, it was incredible to have her safe in my arms once again. Knowing that nothing else would ever hurt her, no one else would come for us again. The feeling of relieve washed over me, leaving me with the one thought that always evaded me when it came to Bella, what she was thinking? Had she finally realized the monster I was? How could she not?
"Tell me why," she insisted. "Why did you think I would be afraid of you?"
"I'm sorry," I said, apologizing, yet again. "So sorry. I didn't want you to see that. See me like that. I know I must have terrified you."
She thought about that for another moment. Terrified –would be my expectation of her, but my assumptions were habitually wrong. Knowing that to be the truth, this was not the time I wanted to be right. I wished, not for the first time, that she would never have to see that part of myself, I had no desire for her to see me like that, but now that she had I needed to know what she was thinking.
"Seriously?" she finally asked. "You… what? Thought you'd scared me off?" she snorted.
Putting my hand under her chin, I tilted her head back to read her face. Relief washed over me as comprehension set. Her words were not ones of horror. Her reaction as always stunning. I was incapable of deciding… was she insane… or was this shock?
"Bella, I just" –I hesitated and then forced the words out- "I just beheaded and dismembered a sentient creature not twenty yards from you. That doesn't bother you?" I frowned at her.
She shrugged. "Not really. I was only afraid that you Seth were going to get hurt. I wanted to help, but there's only so much I can do…"
Anger… repulsion… anxiety, those were the words to describe the longest moment of my life. Standing there helpless –for what seemed like a lifetime –as she gashed that rock threw her arm. How could she do something so absurd? How could she put herself at so much risk? Shaking my head at the thought.
"Yes," I said. "Your little stunt with the rock. You know that you nearly gave me a heart attack? Not the easiest thing to do, that."
Fury blow out of every portion of me, in that fleeting moment, wondering if she was alright, not knowing how hurt she was. The helpless feeling I had endured was grueling and the inept feeling of not knowing… agonizing.
"I wanted to help… Seth was hurt…"
"Seth was only feigning that he was hurt, Bella. It was a trick. And then you…!" I shook my head. "Seth couldn't see what you were doing, so I had to step in. Seth's a bit disgruntled that he can't claim a single-handed defeat now."
"Seth was… faking?"
I nodded sternly.
"Oh."
We both looked at Seth, who was studiously ignoring us, watching the flames. Smugness radiated from every hair in his fur. He was completely pleased with himself and righteously so, he'd earned his moment of glory. His handling of the situation was remarkable, and I was very impressed by him.
"Well, I didn't know that," she said, defensively. "And it's not easy being the only helpless person around. Just you wait till I'm a vampire! I'm not going to be sitting on the sidelines next time."
Emotions ran rapid, imagining for one fleeting second, her changing… not an image I'd keep in my mind. But, she was so adorable with her kittenish anger it was amusing. "Next time? Did you anticipate another war soon?"
"With my luck? Who knows?"
Rolling my eyes, all emotions were washing out of my body. She was safe. She was in my arms and somehow she hadn't thought I was a monster. What more could I ask for?
Everything was finally over.
Or… was it?
"Hold on. Didn't you say something before…?" she flinched. "About a complication? And Alice, needing to nail down the schedule for Sam. You said it was going to be close. What was going to be close?"
My eyes flickered back to Seth, and we exchanged a loaded glance. With all the excitement we'd almost forgot what was about to happen in the clearing.
"Well?" she asked.
"It's nothing, really," I said quickly. "But we do need to be on our way…"
Attempting to pull her onto my back, she stiffened and drew away.
"Define nothing."
Taking her face between my palms. "We only have a minute, so don't panic, all right? I told you that you had no reason to be afraid. Trust me on that, please?"
She nodded, attempting –very badly –to hide her sudden terror. "No reason to be afraid. Got it."
Pursing my lips for a second, I was deciding how much to tell to her. Seth's thoughts called to me demanding my attention.
Edward! There's a problem. Seth thought.
I could see what he was talking about as Leah came into my line of sight.
"What's she doing?" I asked.
Showing off would be my guess. Seth began.
Everything went silent and for one endless second we watched as Leah went up against a newborn on her own. Thinking she could take him down… she was wrong.
Gasping I shouted. "NO!" my hand automatically flew out to help. "Don't…!"
A spasm rocked through Seth's body, and a howl blistering with agony, ripped through his lungs. His thoughts were spinning like a tornado. I was unable to keep up with them all.
Falling to my knees at the exact same moment, gripping the sides of my head with both hands. It was painful to watch for both Seth and I, because rushing to Leah's aide was Jacob. He ran after her, pushing her out of the way and attacking the newborn.
Jacob couldn't get out of the way fast enough and the newborn got his arms around him. The newborn squeezed so hard, I could actually feel the pain.
Bella screamed once in bewildered terror, and dropped to her knees beside me. She attempted to pull my hands from my head, but I couldn't break free from the vision in front of me.
"Edward! Edward!"
My eyes focused on her, straining to see her, pulling my clenched teeth apart.
"It's okay. We're going to be fine. It's…" I broke off, and winced again.
"What's happening?" she cried out, while Seth howled in anguish.
"We're fine. We're going to be okay," I gasped. "Sam –help him-"
Jacob's attempt to help Leah had failed… Leah was out of danger, but now it was Jacob who was in trouble. The newborn was getting the best of him, locking his arms around Jacob, as he continued to squeeze. Finally, Sam and Paul were there to help, pulling the newborn off Jacob. They ripped and tore the newborn to pieces. It was over, all except Jacob who lay there in pain.
"Seth!" I shouted.
Seth was crouched, still tense in agony, looking as if he meant to launch himself into the forest. The pull for him to go and help was strong. But, from everything I had seen the wolves had things under control again down in the clearing. Bella and I still needed to get there, quickly.
Should I come with you? Seth asked.
"No!" I ordered. "You go straight home. Now. As fast as you can!"
Seth whimpered, shaking his head from side to side. He want to follow us. He wanted to help, but there was no way I could allow that, he needed to go home at once. There was no way I would allow him to be in the clearing for what would happen next.
"Seth. Trust me."
The wolf stared into my agonized eyes for one long second, and then he straightened up and flew into the trees, disappearing like a ghost. He trusted me.
Cradling Bella tightly against my chest, I began running through the shadowy forest, making our descent, taking a different path than the wolf.
"Edward," she fought with speech. "What happened, Edward? What happened to Sam? Where are we going? What's happening?"
"We have to get back to the clearing," I told her. "We knew there was a good possibility of this happening. Earlier this morning, Alice saw it and passed it through Sam to Seth. The Voltrui decided it was time to intercede."
She was silent… her face went blank. I wondered if she heard me, if she understood what I was saying to her. She was so unresponsive it was scaring me.
"Don't panic. They aren't coming for us. It's just the normal contingent of the guard that usually cleans up this kind of mess. Nothing momentous, they're merely doing their job. Of course, they seem to have timed their arrival very carefully. Which leads me to believe that no one in Italy would mourn if these newborns had reduced the size of the Cullen family," I said through clench teeth. "I'll know for sure what they were thinking when they get to the clearing."
"Is that why we're going back?" she whispered.
She was panicking and if there were any other way around it, I would gladly drop her off at the house before heading to the clearing, but if I showed up without her it would only peak the Volturi's curiosity. I wished, not for the first time, that Bella was not a thought to them, the less they thought about Bella, the better, but of course, this was not the case.
"It's part of the reason. Mostly, it will be safer for us to present a united front at this point. They have no reason to harass us, but… Jane's with them. If she thought we were alone somewhere away from the others, it might tempt her. Like Victoria, Jane will probably guess that I'm with you. Demetri, of course, is with her. He could find me, if Jane asked him to."
Bella grunted. She was scared, could I blame her? Seeing her face so terrified… so panicked… not having the ability to calm her was distressing. Having them here without knowing their true intentions was aggravating.
"Shh, Bella, shh. It's all going to be fine. Alice can see that."
Her panic had not subsided.
"The pack?"
"They had to leave quickly. The Volturi do not honor truces with werewolves."
Her breath quickened, becoming very rapid.
"I swear they will be fine," I promised her. "The Volturi won't recognize the scent –they won't realize the wolves are here; this isn't a species they are familiar with. The pack will be fine."
She became very still, lost in thought. I had hoped this information would calm her down and give her the reassurance that the wolves would be fine. She was so scared, I wanted to take her out of here, get her away from all of this, but sadly, I couldn't, we needed to make an appearance in the clearing, there was no way around that, as much as I wished there was.
"What happened?" she whispered again. "Before. When Seth was howling? When you were hurt?"
I had hoped to avoid this subject, it didn't seem right to tell her that Jacob got hurt when we couldn't go to him and make sure everything was okay. I had hoped we could get through the meeting with the Volturi before I had to break this news to her. It really wasn't necessary to share all the details with her, everything would be fine now.
"Edward! Tell me!"
"It was all over," I whispered. "The wolves didn't count their half… they thought they had them all. Of course, Alice couldn't see…"
"What happened?" she demanded.
"One of the newborns was hiding… Leah found him –she was being stupid, cocky, trying to prove something. She engaged him alone…"
"Leah," she repeated. "Is she going to be okay?"
"Leah wasn't hurt," I mumbled.
She stared at me for a long second. I couldn't tell, how could I tell her that Jacob was hurt and I didn't know how bad it was. Didn't we had enough to worry about with the Volturi? I saw no reason to make her worry more, unnecessarily.
"We're almost there," I said, staring at the cloud in the sky.
She followed my gaze staring at the purple cloud of smoke in the sky. It was the same as the one at our little camp, only bigger.
"Edward," she said. "Edward, someone got hurt."
"Yes," I whispered.
"Who?" she asked.
Slowing to a walk, we came through the trees to the clearing. Although, I was unwilling to tell her, there was no way around it.
"Jacob."
She nodded once.
"Of course," she whispered.
Her eyes closed and remained that way. She was out cold. Concern swept threw me as I placed her softly on the ground and began brushing her cheek.
"Bella," I said panicked. "Carlisle…" I shouted.
Carlisle was immediately by my side, kneeling beside her, placing his hands on her forehead.
"What happened, Edward?" he demanded.
"Nothing… I was just explaining how Jacob got hurt and she passed out," I replied.
"It was probably too much for her. Her mind is just protecting itself. She'll be fine, Edward. Don't worry."
"Are you sure?" I asked, panicked.
"Yes. Calm down, Edward."
Esme made her way over to us, kneeling down next to Carlisle. Placing her hand on Bella's head, she stroked her hair, then placed her hand over mine.
"Edward, she'll be okay," she whispered.
"Thank you," I answered.
With time was passing, and no movement from Bella, my anxiety level was rising. I was stroking her face again and again, repeating her name over and over, hoping with all that I was that she would open her eyes and look at me. The more time she was unconscious the more tortured I became. Too much time was passing and she wasn't waking. With no movement from her I could no longer stand it. Going out of my mind with worry.
"Carlisle –it's been five minutes," I pleaded.
"She'll come around when she's ready, Edward," Carlisle said calmly. "She's had too much to deal with today. Let her mind protect itself."
And it all came down to the same thing I hated most in the world… waiting. No matter the circumstance, no matter what was happening, I always seemed to be waiting. Patience is not one of my strongest qualities, but somehow it seems to be what I do most of the time. How could I sit here and wait while Bella was unconscious? What if she was really hurt? Perhaps, I'd missed something during our fight. Maybe something happened to her.
"Alice, how long do we have?" I demanded.
"Another five minutes. And Bella will open her eyes in thirty-seven seconds. I wouldn't doubt that she can hear us now."
"Bella, honey?" Esme pleaded softly. "Can you hear me? You're safe now, dear."
Placing my lips to her ear. "He's going to live, Bella. Jacob Black is healing as I speak. He'll be fine."
Her eyes finally opened and gazed at me. If I had a heart it would've started pumping again. To see her eyes open washed away any anxiety I was having. Seeing her big brown orbs staring back at me was the greatest sight in the world.
"Oh, Bella," I sighed in relief, touching my lips to hers.
"Edward," she whispered.
"Yes, I'm here."
"Jacob is okay?"
"Yes," I promised.
She stared deeply into my eyes, I'm sure to see if I were being truthful.
"I examined him myself," Carlisle said, Bella turned her head to him. "His life is not in any danger. He was healing at an incredible rate, though his injuries were extensive enough that it will still be a few days before he is back to normal, even if the rate of repair holds steady. As soon as we're done here, I will do what I can to help him. Sam is trying to get him to phase back to his human form. That will make treating him easier," Carlisle smiled slightly. "I've never been to veterinarian school."
"What happened to him?" she whispered. "How bad are his injuries?"
Carlisle's face was serious again. "Another wolf was in trouble…"
"Leah," Bella whispered.
"Yes. He knocked her out of the way, but he didn't have time to defend himself. The newborn got his arms around him. Most of the bones on the right half of his body were shattered."
Bella flinched.
"Sam and Paul got there in time. He was already improving when they took him back to La Push."
"He'll be back to normal?" Bella asked.
"Yes, Bella. He won't have any permanent damage."
Bella took a deep breath.
"Three minutes," Alice said quietly.
Bella began moving, realizing she was trying to get up, I helped her to her feet.
She started at the space ahead of us.
My family stood in a loose semicircle around the bonfire. This was a scene I'd rather hide from Bella, but there was no avoiding it. Glancing at the bonfire my family was gathered around our threat. Jasper stood the closest, tensely watching with his arms extended slightly, not taking any chances.
Beyond him sat a small girl curled up into a ball beside the flames, her arms wrapped around her legs. She was very young. Her eyes focused on Bella, brilliant red in color. Seeing Bella's expression, she was bewildered as to why Bella was here... and alive.
Bella, on the other hand, stared at the girl intensely. I could only image what she thought seeing this newborn staring at her the way she was.
"She surrendered," I explained to her quietly. "That's one I've never seen before. Only Carlisle would think of offering. Jasper doesn't approve."
Bella's eyes remained fix on the young vampire. I wrapped both arms around her as she clung to my chest. The young vampire started to wonder about our relationship. She wondered how I could have my lips so close to Bella's throat without sinking my teeth into her.
"Is Jasper all right?" she whispered.
"He's fine. The venom stings."
"He was bitten?" she asked, horrified at the idea.
The young vampire's mind was swirling with questions. She wanted to know who Bella was? Why she was here with us? Why we hadn't killer her yet? She wanted to know why Bella was so comfortable with us, why she wasn't scared of us? She couldn't understand how Bella was here, but couldn't see the reality of our world.
Suddenly the burn in her throat became unbearable as the wind blow Bella's scent directly at the young vampire. She caught Bella's scent and on instinct was preparing to hunt, drawing my attention, but only slightly for the moment.
"He was trying to be everywhere at once. Trying to make sure Alice had nothing to do, actually," I shook my head. "Alice doesn't need anyone's help."
Alice glared at Jasper. "Overprotective fool."
Jasper turned his attention to Alice with a half-smile.
The young vampire suddenly threw her head back wildly and shrilled, barely fighting the instinct of taking advantage of Jaspers lapse and spring for Bella. She thought it would take less than a second to have her warm blood to quench her burn.
My eyes meet the young vampires in warning, letting her know she would be dead if she tried anything. The burn was agonizing to her and she screamed out in frustration.
Jasper growled at her as she cringed back, her fingers dug into the ground like claws, whipping her head back and forth in anguish. Jasper took a step toward her, slipping deeper into his crouch. I moved sharply, turning our bodies so that I was between the girl and Bella. She wanted Bella. Bella's scent was driving her mad.
Carlisle was at Jasper's side in an instant. Putting a restraining hand on Jasper's arm.
"Have you changed your mind, young one?" Carlisle asked, calmly. "We don't want to destroy you, but we will if you can't control yourself."
"How can you stand it?" the girl asked him, almost begging. "I want her," her eyes turned to me, actually staring threw me, to Bella. Her thoughts were grueling and listening was challenging.
"You must stand it," Carlisle told her gravely. "You must exercise control. It is possible, and it is the only thing that will save you now."
The young vampire was deciding her fate, wondering if the pain was worth surviving. She didn't want to die, but she didn't want the pain and she was wondering what the point was. Everyone she knew was dead. And then, a name fell from her mind… Diego. She clutched her hands around her head, yowling quietly.
"Shouldn't we move away from her?" Bella whispered, tugging at my arm.
The girl's lip pulled back over her teeth when she heard Bella's voice.
"We have to stay here," I murmured. "They are coming to the north end of the clearing now."
Bella's heart burst into heavy beating as she looked around the clearing. Wanting desperately to run with her, take her from the situation we were about to face, it was impossible. Leaving now, not being here to face the Volturi, would surely send them looking for us. That was the last thing we needed happening. Showing them a united front, assuring them we had nothing to hide, would put an end to any suspicions they may have of Bella. Checking her human status won't have happened this soon, if not for the circumstances we were in now.
The young vampire was confused… wondering who 'they' were. She glanced to the north, but couldn't see anyone. Names poured form her mind, Riley and her creator. She wondered if they were coming to save her, hope passed briefly through her as she thought maybe it was them, but it was quickly dashed knowing that tow vampires didn't stand a chance against all of us.
Then she thought of the Volturi, calling them the mysterious ones. I wondered what she was told about them, did she realize the danger she was in being in their presence. It didn't seem so.
The wind picked up sending Bella's scent the young vampires way again, scattering all of her thoughts.
Carlisle and Jasper began to back toward the rest of us. Emmett, Rosalie, and Esme all converged hastily around where Bella and I stood with Alice. We gathered together with Bella at the heart of our group, well protected.
As we gathered around Bella, the young vampire's thoughts ran ramped. She thought she should run, wondering if we were distracted enough to make a break for it. As she thought about where she would go she dropped another name… Fred. I wondered who Fred was and was he part of the coven we just destroyed. I thought not, since she clearly thought she could go to him.
Her thoughts went back to Riley and making him pay for whatever he had done to Diego. Her thoughts hung on there for a moment before she heard noise coming from the North side of the clearing. She realized immediately she was in between our group and the Voturi, with nowhere to go.
Staring straight ahead the Volturi came into my view.
"Hmm," a voice murmured from the mist.
The dark-cloaks. The young vampire said in her mind.
She knew the Volturi and wondered if they were bringing a new battle with them. And suddenly, a new piece of information fell from her mind. The Volturi's wanted us dead, they wanted her creator and Riley to destroy us.
"Welcome, Jane," I offered.
They proceeded forward, with Jane in lead, of course. All dressed in gray robes, Jane was the smallest figure. Behind her were Felix and Demetri. Felix let his hood fall back and looked up at me. He smiled, then winked at Bella. Remaining very still at Bella's side, in control for the moment.
Jane's gaze moved slowly across the faces of my family and then down to the small girl beside the fire, the newborn had her head in her hands again.
"I don't understand." Jane's voice was undistinguished.
Her thoughts rang out loudly, wondering what was going on here. Why this girl was still alive? It also seemed to her that we all made it through unharmed. But, the most prominent thought was why this girl was here?
"She has surrendered," I explained, answering the confusion in her mind.
Jane's dark eyes flashed to mine. "Surrendered?"
Felix and Demetri exchanged a quick glance. They could never understand this, a vampire who surrenders, unheard of. Who would even offer such a thing?
I shrugged. "Carlisle gave her the option."
"There are no options for those who break the rules," Jane said flatly.
Carlisle spoke up. "That's in your hands. As long as she was willing to halt her attack on us, I saw no need to destroy her. She was never taught."
"That is irrelevant," Jane insisted, irritation strong in her voice.
"As you wish."
Jane stared at Carlisle in consternation. She shook her head infinitesimally, and then composed her features. This was distress to Carlisle, he always searched for a peaceful ending, but the Volturi –they didn't cared –rules were rules and you don't break the rules without consequences.
"Aro hoped that we would get far enough west to see you, Carlisle. He sends his regards."
Carlisle nodded. "I would appreciate it if you would convey mine to him."
"Of course." Jane smiled, looking back toward the smoke. "It appears that you've done our work for us today… for the most part," her eyes flickered toward the small vampire. "Just out of professional curiosity, how many were there? They left quite a wake of destruction in Seattle."
The young vampire started thinking about her creator and the others in her coven, wondering why they were never told the rules. Why they were left in the dark about our world? Once again noting the visit by the black-cloaks not to long before.
All of this confirmed my suspicions about the Volturi and their abuse of power.
"Eighteen, including this one," Carlisle answered.
Jane's eyes widened as she looked at the fire again, reassessing the size of it. Felix and Demetri exchanged a longer glance. She drew immediately that the size of the fire hadn't suited the amount of bodies.
"Eighteen?" she repeated, her voice sounding unsure for the first time.
"All brand-new," Carlisle said dismissively. "They were unskilled."
"All?" her voice turned sharp. "Then who was their creator?"
Why is she asking when she knew exactly who our creator was? She even met her.
"Her name was Victoria," I answered, unemotional.
They young vampire peeked up at me wondering how I knew Victoria's name, when she didn't even know.
"Was?" Jane asked.
Inclining my head toward the eastern forest knowing exactly what she was wondering. Jane's eyes snapped up and focused on the fire in the far distance. Staring for a long moment, she then examined the closer bonfire again.
"This Victoria –she was in addition to the eighteen here?"
Thoughts swirled her mind with the amount of newborns we had dealt with. She wanted to know how we accomplished this. With only seven of us, along with one human, Jane was having trouble comprehending how this went down.
Everyone's thoughts were filling my head making it difficult not to react to any one of them.
"Yes. She had only one other with her. He was not as young as this one here, but no older than a year."
The young vampire was happy to know Riley was dead and that Diego's death was avenged.
"Twenty," Jane breathed. "Who dealt with the creator?"
"I did," I told her.
Jane's eyes narrowed, and she turned to the girl beside the fire.
"You there," she said, her voice harsher than before. "Your name."
The newborn shot a baleful glare at Jane, her lips pressed tightly together. She knew she would die today and decided not to answer Jane, which was unfortunate on her part.
Jane smiled at her.
The newborn girl's answering scream was ear piercing; her body arched stiffly into a distorted, unnatural position. Bella looked away, very disturbed by what was happening. I was certain she was having flashbacks to when Jane had used her gift on me in Italy.
Finally, Jane stopped.
"Your name," Jane asked again.
"Bree," the girl gasped as fast as she could.
Jane smiled, and the girl shrieked again.
"She'll tell you anything you want to know," I said through my teeth. "You don't have to do that."
Jane looked up, sudden humor in her dead eyes. "Oh, I know," she said, grinning at me before she turned back to the young vampire.
"Bree," Jane said, her voice cold again. "Is his story true? Were there twenty of you?"
The girl lay panting, the side of her face pressed against the earth. She spoke quickly. "Nineteen or twenty, maybe more, I don't know!" she cringed, terrified that her ignorance might bring on another round of torture. "Sara and the one whose name I don't know got in a fight on the way…"
"And this Victoria –did she create you?"
"I don't know," she said, flinching again. "Riley never said her name. I didn't see that night… it was so dark, and it hurt…" Bree shuddered. "He didn't want us to be able to think of her. He said that our thoughts weren't safe…"
Jane's eyes flickered to me, and then back to the girl. This statement struck a chord in Jane, knowing the reason they would need to hide their thoughts. She wanted to know how they knew about my gift. This conversation was entering dangerous territory. If the Volturi knew about our involvement in James and Laurent's deaths it would surely bring their wrath upon us all.
"Tell me about Riley," Jane said. "Why did he bring you here?"
"Riley told us that we had to destroy the strange yellow-eyes here," Bree babbled quickly. "He said it would be easy. He said that the city was theirs, and they were coming to get us. He said once they were gone, all the blood would be ours. He gave us her scent," Bree lighted her finger pointing in Bella's direction. "He said we would know that we had the right coven, because she would be with them. He said whoever got to her first could have her."
Automatic tension flowed threw me when she mentioned Bella. But, I was also concerned that this Bree would mention the wolves that helped us. The last thing we needed was to explain who they were.
"It looks like Riley was wrong about the easy part," Jane noted.
Bree nodded, seeming relieved that the conversation had taken a non-painful course. She sat up carefully. She also knew there was a mind reader among us, but I'm certain she didn't know which one of us it was.
"I don't know what happened. We split up, but the others never came. And Riley left us, and he didn't come to help like he promised. And then it was so confusing, and everybody was in pieces." She shuddered again. "I was afraid. I wanted to run away. That one" –she looked at Carlisle- "said they wouldn't hurt me if I stopped fighting."
Bree nodded in Carlisle's direction.
"Ah, but that wasn't his gift to offer, young one," Jane murmured. "Broken rules demand a consequence."
Bree stared at her, not comprehending. Relieve spread threw me as I realized that Bree hadn't gotten a good look at the wolves, they took care of the other group. It seemed she knew nothing of the wolves.
Jane looked at Carlisle. "Are you sure you got all of them? The other half that spit off?"
Bree's thoughts turn to the other half, she was happy the fate the others had suffered at the hands of the wolf's. My only hope was that she wouldn't mention the wolf's part in all of this, or that they were here at all.
Carlisle nodded. "We split up, too."
Jane half-smiled. "I can't deny that I'm impressed."
Felix and Demetri were in agreement.
"I've never seen a coven escape this magnitude of offensive intact. Do you know what was behind it? It seems like extreme behavior, considering the way you live here. And why was the girl the key?" Her eyes rested on Bella for one short second.
"Victoria held a grudge against Bella," I told her.
Jane laughed. "This one" –and she smiled at Bella – " seems to bring out bizarrely strong reactions in our kind."
I stiffened. "Would you please not do that?" I asked, fury building.
Jane laughed again lightly. "Just checking. No harm done, apparently."
My arm tightened around Bella, and I once again thanked the higher power that seemed to shine brightly on her, making her immune to all of our gifts.
"Well, it appears that there's not much left for us to do. Odd," Jane said. "We're not used to being rendered unnecessary. It's too bad we missed the fight. It sounds like it would have been entertaining to watch."
"Yes," I answered her quickly, my voice sharper than I intended. "And you were so close. It's a shame you didn't arrive just a half hour earlier. Perhaps then you could have fulfilled your purpose here."
Bree figured out that I was the mind reader, but my attention stayed completely focused on Jane. I put that statement out to get a reaction from her, her response would tell me exactly what I needed to know about the situation.
Jane met my glare with unwavering eyes. "Yes. Quite a pity how things turned out, isn't it?"
Nodding once to myself, fortifying my belief that they knew exactly what time to show up here. From Bree's and Jane's thoughts, I know new I was right in the assumption that Aro wanted our entire coven extinguished. Jane wished we had a few casualties on our side and was disappointed that hadn't happened.
Jane turned to the newborn again. "Felix?" she said.
Bree peeked at me from the corner of her eye. Thanks, she stated clearly to me.
"Wait," I interjected.
Jane raised an eyebrow, but I stared at Carlisle when I spoke. "We could explain the rules to the young one. She doesn't seem unwilling to learn. She didn't know what she was doing."
"Of course," Carlisle answered. "We would certainly be prepared to take responsibility for Bree."
Jane's expression was between amusement and disbelief.
"We don't make exceptions," she said. "And we don't give second chances. It's bad for our reputation. Which reminds me…" Suddenly, her eyes were on Bella again. "Caius will be so interested to hear that you're still human, Bella. Perhaps he'll decide to visit."
"The date is set," Alice told Jane, speaking for the first time. "Perhaps we'll come to visit you in a few months."
Jane's smile faded, and she shrugged indifferently. She turned to face Carlisle. "It was nice to meet you, Carlisle –I'd thought Aro was exaggerating. Well, until we meet again…"
Carlisle nodded, his expression pained.
Bree's thoughts turned to her friend Fred, who was apparently still out there, somewhere. She wished she could have told him about the day's events and about our world.
Be nice to him, please, she begged me.
"Take care of that, Felix," Jane said, nodding toward the small vampire. "I want to go home."
"Don't watch," I whispered in Bella's ear.
Bella squeezed her eyes tight, pressing her face into my chest. Rubbing her shoulders, I knew there was no covering the sound that was sure to fill the night air, but at least she wouldn't have to witness what was happening.
"Come," Jane said.
The gray cloaks disappeared into the thick mist.
Hope you enjoyed that, if so, hit the review button and let me know, or if you didn't, let me know that too. Thanks for reading and reviewing.