Chapter 26:
A boy with long, dark wavy hair enters the room, his hair fell to just about his chin. He looked about seventeen or eighteen. His eyes were black, he'd want to drink soon. His skin was pale porcelain, not as translucent as Aro, Marcus and Caius. He was strong built but he was smaller than Emmett, he probably had the same build as Jasper. His eyes met mine; he gave me a small smile before they retreated. He didn't fit in here.
"I'll be with you in a moment Aidan." Aro says. The boy nods and leans against the wall casually.
I focus back on Aro. "What do you mean?" I ask him as everyone in the room focuses on me.
"You have already been made a donor," Aro says to me calmly, "there's no need to waste that."
"What are you saying?" I ask him and I look at him then to the Cullens. Alice has moved closer and Edward is still squeezing my hand.
"You are a donor for the rest of your life Melaine. Your blood replenishes faster than anything really." He says and sniffs the air. "I don't think your blood would taste bad, Blake after all did choose you," he looks me up and down in a way that a man sizes a girl up before they bring them to a closet to fuck their brains out, or how I would imagine the look, "let's face it, Blake always has had brilliant taste."
"This isn't why we came," Alice speaks up. She takes my arm. "We are leaving." She announces and starts leading me away.
"We are not finished!" Aro bellows. We freeze immediately. "If you guys are in a rush to leave, by all means leave Melaine here so I can discuss this with her." He smiles to me in a dirty manner, a manner that doesn't say he is married. "We'll take good care of her."
We turn back to face them and Aro tells us to come back closer.
"Our blood resources are getting more and more difficult to retrieve. We always go outside of the city to get our visitors. It's been taking longer and longer for the visitors to get here. It would nice to be able to…snack." He smiles evilly. My insides cringe but I don't let him see that. Why do I have this effect on vampires? Why can't they be disgusted by me like Caius seems to be.
"So what I would just be here for all of you to drain me of my blood. I would be nothing better than a cheap whore but instead of my body you all take my blood. What would I get in return? Why would I ever consider being the donor to the great Voluturi?" I ask him seriously.
Aro smiles. "You would be more than a cheap whore. You would be a source of life. What could you want more? But if that doesn't please you, could you imagine the peace between the shifters and vampires with you by my side and the side of the Volturi. It will do impeccable things for your kind my dear. You will be included in decisions about your kind. It will help your kind very much to have you take this offer. Not to mention, what else would you do darling, the boy you love denies you and wishes to have nothing to do with you? This is the best offer for you and your kind. Think of your dear friends, the ones in love. What were their names again? Leah and Embry?"
I look to Alice and Jasper who are now in each other's arms and I look over to Edward.
"I will be a part of all decisions?" I ask Aro.
"Of course." He smiles.
"And your wives, how will they see me? Surely they wouldn't be happy with the fact that there's a young girl which everyone is gaining blood from. And based on the way you are looking at me I can't say that your intentions are innocent. I do not plan on being a prostitute for you to pass around." I tell him blankly and to the point. "I would only be here as a blood donor and an advisor for my kind."
"I wouldn't have it any other way." Aro smiles enjoying this too much.
"And if I don't accept your offer?" I ask Aro but I look to Marcus and Caius. Marcus seems bored by the whole thing and Caius looks bitter about something.
"Then there will be no one here to speak for your kind when needed and we'll find another donor. Not that you aren't unique darling but we all have needs." Aro smiles.
I bite my bottom lip unsure of how to deal with this. It would do amazing things for my pack and packs like mine around the world. I was made into this, Aro is right why should I waste it? Also what if Aro chooses an innocent soul to be the next donor? What if that ruins the innocent person? It would be all my fault when I could have taken the responsibility. It would be nice to get away from La Push and Jake. I don't know if I can handle being less than a mile from him all the time.
"May I speak with Melaine in private?" Edward speaks up. I look to him wondering what he could possibly have to say.
"Why not?" Aro says and points to a door in the back of the room. Edward leads me through it. I feel all eyes on me. Edward closes the large wooden door easily and I realize we are in a parlor.
"Don't even think about agreeing to that." Edward says to me softly.
"Give me a reason not to. What do I have in La Push?" I ask him seriously.
"Friends, family, Jake." Edward says.
"You are mistaken, I'm sure you are well aware of the…breakup. So you can mark off the last one." I tell him shortly. "It would be good for shifters all over the world to have me looking out for them. My friends and family would understand."
"You can't hear his thoughts Mel. Don't do this." Edward says close to me softly.
"Why do you care so suddenly? Why do any of you care so much recently? A week or two ago you wouldn't have cared if Blake would have drained me and if my destiny as he called it was fulfilled." I say to him.
"We would have cared; of course we would have cared. But while you healed, we all got to know and care about you and that's not something we can reverse. We all care about you. I made a promise to a lot of people to take care of you, one in particular seemed desperate, and so I'm not going to just let you throw away your life because you can't hear his disgusting thoughts about you Mel. Please, I'm begging you on behalf of a number of wonderful people you love to not do this." Edward pleads.
I don't know what to do. I'm about to start crying all over again because I'm thinking about Jake. I'm thinking about his words to me the night of the break up.
You risked everything for that perverted leech.
I just don't know if I can trust you.
I told you I loved you.
I can't love someone I don't trust.
"I don't know if I'll survive if I go back to La Push and I have to live so close to him Edward. You must understand that. My heart… it's broken, it's my fault but that doesn't mean that it hurts any less. To see… Jake again, I'm afraid it will completely be shattered, beyond repair. Do you understand how petrifying that is? I never thought he'd have this much power over me, but he does. He hardly fought for me, he never loved me. I can't go back and live walking distance from him. I'm afraid I'll break the way Bella broke when you left. I couldn't bear for my loved ones to see me that way; I couldn't bear seeing myself that way." I tell him and I can feel myself about to crumble.
"You aren't Bella, Melaine. You are already different than she was. If you can't handle it, you can always live with everyone else, I would say you could stay with me but Bella and I live away from everyone else and I don't think you and Bella in close proximity is a good idea. But you can live with my family, that's a far walking distance to Jake. I know you think that this is good, but don't sacrifice yourself for your own kind, the Volturi will not include you in the most important decisions, they'll go behind your back, drain you of your blood and Aro will use you to release his sexual frustration, there's no telling what gross disturbing things anyone else like Demetri would do when they have their assigned feeding time with you." Edward cringes at the thought. "Please…" He begs again. I don't take Edward for a begging man and seeing that he's begged me and for me a lot in the past hour says a lot. "Don't do this. If not for yourself then for everyone else who wouldn't want this. For Alice and Jasper who risked everything to come here, do you think Alice would be able to handle knowing what's in store for you. And your father, what would he say if we showed up without you and told him that we let them convince you to be a prostitute and a blood donor. For your pack who would be by your side until the end, I know this because even with the Blake incident they forgave you. And Embry, who I know would do anything for you, he'd probably rush here and get himself killed in seconds. And me, what about me? I'm begging you not to do this. I can't stand their thoughts anymore. Your father would have me shredded in a second once I told him the thoughts I heard and how I let you stay, then my daughter will grow up without a father you don't want that right? And last but certainly not least, Jake." Edward says and looks to me warily.
"You had me until that last bit. Why do you keep mentioning him Edward! It's over! Do you wish to break me more and more again and again?" I say and I'm about to start crying.
"I've been meaning to tell you; before we left I went to go see Jake." Edward says.
"You did what?" I ask him.
"I told Bella and Nessie goodbye and then I rushed over to see Jake. He wasn't happy to see me at first but I thought he had the right to know you were coming to Volterra."
"Let me get this straight, you thought it would be good manners to tell the boy who broke my heart that I was going to Volterra and possibly risking me life! Now he'll definitely think I've gone mad without him." I tell Edward enraged. "You had no right Edward. This was my business. He gave up the right to be in my business when he left me." I tell him and cross my arms across my chest.
"Actually, he said technically you left him. He said he tried calling your name but you wouldn't stop." Edward says matter-of-factly.
"He broke up with me. He broke up with me!" I raise my voice again. "I'm sorry I didn't wait around to watch him walk out of my life."
"Don't be like that," Edward says.
"You went behind my back and told him where I was going. Why? Why would he care? Why would you think that was okay?" I say.
"Because he still loves you and I know if I was Jake and the love of my life was running into the arms of danger I'd want to know." Edward says. "Go back out there, tell them you aren't interested and let's leave. You can go back home or try to sort things out with Jake. Just don't do this."
"He never loved me." I say.
"Any moment now!" Aro calls from the other room.
I look to Edward. "I'm ready to make my decision."