A/N:
So here it is, finally an update! I am so sorry it took so long to update and I say it each time but I am so busy at the moment. But I finally wrote this - in my business class. Lucky my teacher wasn't there! Anyway, I hope you enjoy this chapter and please review.
Jasper turned to me and smiled. It was more if a grimace and I wished he hadn't bothered. "Please don't act like everything's okay. It's not. She's missing, Jasper. Missing." The tears well in my eyes and Esme sighs, her face creasing in concern. She walks over to me and squeezes my shoulder, her touch gentler than any human's could have been. I lean into her touch. Ever since we've moved to Froks, I've missed my mother more than ever. Jasper doesn't know how lucky he is to have her. None of her children do. "You'll find her, won't you?" I ask.
"Of course we will." Esme promises. She looks to Carlisle.. "Nothing will stop us from finding her. We'll look to the ends of the earth and back again. I promise. Okay, darling? You'll be alright. She'll be alright too." I glance at Jasper across the room. He's looking to the floor, his forehead wrinkled. In any other situation, I'd find it sweet. Now, I'm just worried.
An hour later, the family had come up with a plan. I had told Auntie Lilly that we were going on holiday. Carlisle had talked it all over with her and she agreed, happy that we'd be out from under her feet for a few days. Next, they'd discussed how they were going to confront the Volturi. I'd heard stories about them and I shivered whenever the name Aro came up in conversation. Tears constantly slipped down my cheeks and even Emmett, the happiest, brightest boy I'd ever met, was close to tears. The person who kept it together most was Rosalie. She, with her sharp tongue, told Carlisle in no uncertain terms that we weren't going to stop until we found Cynthia. She gave me the hint of a smile and then continued.
"The Volturi isn't keeping her. What are they going to do with her? She's seven. They can't change her. She'd be an immortal child. They can't break their own rules. I don't think even they would do that." Carlisle considered for a moment before agreeing.
"I have to say, she's correct. There's no way they would break their own rules." He thinks for a moment. "We just have to fight our case before they do anything rash."
"Rash?" I ask. "Like what? What would they do?" No one answers me, instead choosing to glance at each other around the room. "Jasper?"
Jasper shakes his head, his blonde hair flopping in front of his dark eyes. "Don't." Shakily, I stand and sit next to Jasper. His eyes follow me. It's then I notice how dark his eyes are, how pronounced the circles under his eyes appear to me. He's like a superhuman panda. I frown.
"When did you last feed?" I ask, concerned. "You need to eat." I stroke the hair out of his eyes and he relaxes slightly. "You need to be strong for me. For yourself. For Cynthia," I tell him. "Please."
Rosalie swiftly nods. "You need to be as strong as you can be. You too, Bella. You're our shield, should we need you." Rosalie gives Bella a pointed look. "Alice, you need to try and not show weakness. The Volturi are like bullies at school – though much more powerful. They feed off of knowing that people are afraid, that they're taking things from people."
"Along with human blood." I mutter. Esme smiles wanly.
"They're not like us," she says, nodding and sighing, "It's a shame, because Carlisle and Aro used to be good friends. They used to understand each other. Although it's been many years since they've had the chance to speak properly to one another, I pray that Aro, or even Marcus, has the compassion within him to understand that this is important, that Cynthia is not simply a fortune teller. That she's a little girl, so bright and happy. She's innocent. I'd give everything I have if she could stay like that."
The journey to Volterra seems endless. Jasper steals my passport from Auntie Lilly's house and Carlisle books a flight for all of us. Emmett becomes more and more agitated with every minute we wait. "I just want to find her." He tells me, gently punching me on the arm. Even in the hopeless moment I'm in, that makes me smile.
On the flight, I create scenarios in my head to what is going to happen when we land. I don't know what to expect, whether we will storm in and grab Cynthia, or whether Carlisle will calmly get my sister back. I think the latter is more likely, though I don't think The Volturi is synonymous with calm. Mostly, I watch out the window, my every heartbeat chanting her name.
If we don't find her, then I don't know what I'll do. The very thought sends me into a panic. I push the overwhelming sense of panic down and breathe slowly. The plane makes it feel as if there is no air in my lungs. Still, I fight the urge to run and to scream and to cry. Cynthia needs me. I smooth down my shirt, I sit calmly and I wait for the plane to land, the feeling of dread settling in my stomach in a ball of knots.
When the plane lands, my hands begin to shake uncontrollably and my breathing is shallow. Jasper takes my hand, carefully guiding me away from the people and into a car. In any other situation, I'd admire the car – a canary yellow Porsche. Now, I simply focus on my breathing. I try and scan the future, squeezing my eyes closed to try and bring one on, but all I feel is a pounding in my head and heart. I stare out of the window, watching Italy pass me by and wishing it was a romantic trip, that Jasper had swept me off of my feet. Even if he had asked me to marry him for all the wrong reasons a few days ago.
I decided none of that mattered.
I only wanted to find Cynthia.
