Chapter Twenty Eight
Bella
I was getting really worried, they'd been gone so long and although I had no idea how long it would take for them to find out about Edward and Alice the longer they were gone the more nervous I got and then I started to feel sick. Emmett disappeared for a few minutes then came back with a glass of spirits for me.
"Your heart is going crazy Bella, its making me feel bad just listening to it. Please drink this, Paola says it will calm you down."
"Why are they taking so long Emmett? Isn't it dangerous to hang around inside the citadel?"
"Listen Bella, Jazz has two of the best fighters in our world with him, if anyone can get in, get the information, and get back out again its those three."
"Emmett's right Bella. I know The Major of old and once he sets his mind to something he gets it done."
"But it's dangerous in there Charlotte, even I know that."
"Yes it is but there's been no noise or sound of life and I take that as a signal they haven't been discovered. So please drink that and sit down. Tell me about the last time you were here. Everything you remember because something tells me that The Major thinks he'll be coming out with Alice or her remains."
"Do you think she's dead?"
"I don't know Bella. All I can tell you is that she's not a good person and I don't think she was right for The Major. She always struck me as wearing a mask but it wasn't for us to criticise her. He fell in love with her for all the wrong reasons but that doesn't stop it being real, at least to him. It didn't feel right to me"
"Feel right? What do you mean?"
"I feel relationships, I'm not sure how to explain it clearly to you but either a couple feels right or not and despite The Majors devotion to Alice it never felt right to me."
"Do you think that's why he didn't feel anything? If she's dead I mean."
"Maybe, I don't know, its all guess work but if he comes back without her I see trouble ahead. Even if they weren't mates he's going to be in pain and The Major only knows one way to deal with pain."
"How?"
"He hides it deep inside where he thinks it can't hurt him but he's wrong. It eats away at him, I've seen it before. When he left Maria after he found out she was going to kill him. At first I really thought he was dealing with it but then he went off the rails and for months there was no talking to him, no reasoning with him, in fact he tried to kill Peter once. That's when we pulled back, it was just too dangerous, he didn't recognise anyone and all he wanted was to destroy."
"Destroy? What did he destroy?"
"Anything that got in his way, buildings, people, anything. He followed a course across Colorado and we followed behind, hiding his carnage as best we could but it was a close run thing. We began to think the Volturi would be out looking for him and then it just stopped like a clockwork toy that run down."
"What did he do?"
"He stopped. We found him in a cave up in the Rockies."
"What was he doing up there?"
"Waiting."
"Waiting for what?"
"I have no idea, he wouldn't say. In fact he didn't speak or move for three weeks and we thought he was going to starve himself into petrification. I'd heard of it once, a vampire who lost the will to live. She just found herself somewhere quiet and waited. Eventually her body froze in place, no blood meant no strength, no more maintenance of the body. She became like a block of stone."
"What happened to her?"
"The Volturi heard. They found her and burned her body, ended it for her. I guess they were worried some human might find her and accidentally bring her back or discover what she was, I don't know."
"So how did you get him moving again?"
Charlotte didn't answer me straight away, she looked out of the window and I could see guilt on her face.
"Charlotte, what did you do?"
"I lied"
Her voice was a sigh but I heard,
"What did you tell him?"
She slid down the wall to sit on the floor looking down at her feet,
"I told him I'd felt there was someone out there for him. Someone who needed him, someone who was suffering."
"And he believed you?"
"Yes I was his friend, one of too few, so of course he believed me and I guess I was lucky because he went off alone after that and within a month he met Alice Cullen so you see I'm to blame for all this and I can't tell him, not now. I couldn't at the time, he thought I'd foretold Alice and I just couldn't tell him he was wrong, that I'd lied. I didn't even tell Peter so please, don't say anything Bella."
"Hey, they're coming"
Emmett had called from downstairs, he'd been sitting in the bar with Marco watching the Clock tower for signs of life and I didn't think he'd heard Charlotte's story. She and I ran down to find the three guys in the bar alone. Peter held Charlotte smiling in pleasure to see her while Darius stood leaning against the wall talking to Emmett. I took one look at Jaspers face and joined him at the table.
"Jasper. Did you find her? Did you find Edward?"
He looked up but these weren't the eyes of the man who had gone into the citadel, these were hard and bright and the muscles around them were tense,
"They're dead, both of them"
The words were forced from between clenched teeth and I put a hand out to cover his but he snatched it back,
"Don't. I don't want your pity. Save it for someone who cares."
He got up and turned to Darius.
"We need to go now."
I looked from Jasper to Darius but neither were giving anything away so I grabbed my bag and followed the others through the back to the minibus and climbed in the back with Emmett while Peter, Charlotte, and Darius got in the front.
"Drive straight to the airport and get the first available flight back."
Darius nodded and started the engine but I wound my window down,
"Jasper"
He turned to look at me, a stranger,
"Go home Bella, you're safe. They think you're dead. Just go home and forget about us, about the Volturi, about Edward. Get on with your life."
Then he turned and strode off away from us disappearing into the dark alley ways. I tried to open my door but Emmett's huge hand came across and hit the lock.
"Drive Darius"
We left the city and headed back to Pisa but I couldn't take my eyes from the town as it receded behind us.
"What happened? Someone tell me what happened."
Darius filled us in on what he knew but no one knew what passed between Jasper and Marcus when they met, he hadn't said. Only that it was over and I was safe if I went home.
"Where's he going?"
"No idea but I am sure the Cullens are dead although we saw Alice in the audience chamber earlier."
"You mean he killed her?"
"I think he would have done but I don't think he did. I think Marcus might have done that."
"And Edward?"
"I think you were right Bella. I think he died when you said he did. What the connection was I don't know but Alice was involved right up to the top of her little pixie head."
"Fucking bitch. We should go back for him Darius. I know what he's capable of and he shouldn't be alone."
Darius stopped the minibus,
"You want to go back be my guest, but I'm making sure Bella gets back on that plane safely and then I'm gone."
I tried to follow Peter and Charlotte out but Emmett held me back,
"You heard Jazz, you have to go home. Leave him to Peter and Charlotte."
