A/N: and without further ado, the plot twist. Thanks again to Fakin'it for her idea. I hope it brings a better plot twist to the story. :)
Also a couple of fixes for last chapter. Bridal Falls is actually Bridal VEIL Falls I missed that in the edit and to be honest don't feel like fixing it. Plus when I researched the Shoshone and Twin Falls the place I got their itinerary made it seem the falls are two separate falls. They apparently are not. They are one big fall system, kinda like a mini Niagra Falls. One is on one side and the other on the other side. To see what I mean check my Pinterest page. Look under the board name Isabella's Odyssey.
Chapter Thirty-Seven
Bella
I must have fallen asleep while waiting for Jasper because I wake with a start. Something brought me awake, what was it; and better yet, where am I? As the fogginess of sleep lifts I realize I'm in a moving car. One moving at a fast rate of speed at that and that it isn't Jasper driving it. The motion of the vehicle must have been what woke me. Then I hear his voice and fear grips me, but it swiftly turns to anger.
"I'm glad you're awake Bella, my love. We're almost to the airport."
"Edward! What are you doing here?" I'm sure I know why but I want to hear it from him.
"Why I'm rescuing you of course my love, now that the pack isn't helping my brother keep you from me." His smile is genuine, if not a bit frightening. "I thought you'd be happy to see me," he says as the smile begins to fade; and now I'm seething! What a delusional idiot!
"Why would you think that? I'm with my mate and I'm happy to be with him. Edward how many times do you have to be told that we aren't mates and that I don't want to be with you?"
"Oh come now darling, we both know that's not true. He must have brainwashed you. I know once I get you away from his influence you'll remember you love me."
"How did you get to me. Rose and Emmett and Peter and Charlotte were there. Why didn't I wake up either?"
"Well my darling sister and brother and those two barbarians Jasper calls friends were easy. A little money in the right hands, words in the right ears, booze and girls and a loud party made it to where they would have never heard me enter your room. I "naturally listened to their thoughts and saw that they wouldn't check on you for another twenty minutes, so by the time they checked again I was already on the road with you and half way to the airport. It's only about forty minutes away from where you were.
"They'll have let Jasper know by now that you're missing and I'm sure Alice has called him by now too but as far away as he was he'll never reach us in time. Even if he gets the others to start after us without him. Alice is still in Boston so she won't get here in time and by the time the next flight leaves Boston to Pisa, I'll already be in Volterra with you. As for why you didn't wake, in the century I've been alive I took several different college courses. I learned a thing or two. Just enough chloroform to keep you asleep until just a few moments ago. You actually woke just when I planned."
"What do you mean Volterra. Isn't that where the Volturi live. Aren't you risking a lot by taking me there? I mean I'm not your mate, so there's strike one against you, and even though Jake put me on the path it was you who told me what you all were so that's strike two. Are you willing to risk your life? Just take me back and I'm sure I can convince Jasper to let you go and not kill you."
"Oh Bella. When they see you're my mate they'll forgive me telling you the truth and not changing you right away. Even Aro can understand my reluctance to take you from a full human life, surely."
"You're delusional. We'll see who's right in the end." And with that I fall into silence and turn to watch out the windows. Anything to keep from looking at him.
As we drive I see the signs for the Denver International Airport and I become more worried. Hopefully I can make a scene and get away from him there, but then I realize I can't. My new passport and identity are back in the motel room in Jasper's bags. We didn't think we'd need it as we weren't leaving the country.
I have no way of identifying myself and if I cause a scene they're going to ask questions and then they'll realize I'm supposed to be dead and call Charlie. So now I'm stuck. I'm stuck with Edward and can't help but wonder how he plans on getting me out of the country without the proper documents.
We pull into the rental lot to return his car about 10 minutes later, just as he said when I woke. He must have planned this in a way that he could get to me without Alice seeing him do so. I'm not quite sure how though.
"I can see you're curious as to how I got away with getting this rental without alerting Alice. Well I only planned to get the rental, not the why I was getting it, so she would have seen me get the rental, but not what I was going to do with it afterwards." Well that explains that.
"Don't try to make a scene, ok. I wouldn't want to have to hurt anyone. I've rented a private jet, one Carlisle uses quite frequently actually, so it'll be easy to get you out of the country without the proper documents. Alice won't have seen anything I planned as far as you're concerned until the moment I got to the hotel because I didn't factor you into any of my decisions until then. She may have been suspicious about me breaking into a pharmacy for chloroform but I did that just before I came into your room and I made the actual decision on what I needed right at that moment so all my dear little sister would have probably seen was me thinking about pharmaceuticals and as I made it seem as if I was planning to return to college for another medical degree, well the pharmaceuticals would have been explained. The plane will be leaving as soon as we board it but we have a few minutes, would you like to go inside the airport and get anything for the trip, magazines, books, whatever?"
I contemplate this for a moment, when did he call the brothers? Surely Alice had to see that. How did he plan this all so perfectly? I have to think of a way to get away. I'm sure if I asked to go to the bathroom he'd remember the way I gave Jasper the slip all those months ago in Arizona and would say something about there being one on the plane. He probably won't leave me alone at all, just in case. Maybe I can stall long enough for Jasper to get here. He's had to have heard from the others by now.
I nod my head and we head inside to Hudson, which sells candy and books and the like, and as I pretend to browse the books he walks over to the magazines and grabs several. As I'm looking about, trying determine if I can make a run for it, I hear a voice that I wish I hadn't. It's Angie, and Eric. I knew they would be here around the time Jasper and I would be passing through, but I didn't know exactly when and I certainly didn't expect to run into them at the airport since I didn't plan on being here.
"Bella? Is that really you?"
"I'm sorry, you've mistaken me for someone else," I say, hoping this will put her off. No such luck of course.
"Isabella Swan I think I'd know my best friend! We thought you were dead! What's going on, why are you here! What happened?" Just then Edward walks up. This isn't going to be good.
"Well this complicates matters doesn't it?"
"Edward leave them out of this. They have nothing to do with it!"
"I'm sorry Bella, but I can't do that. You see they could decide to go to Charlie and tell him just how alive you are. I can't have that, neither can you. No, I'm sorry but they'll have to die."
"NO! No, don't kill them, just bring them with us. We can explain everything to them and they'll keep quiet, won't you?" I look at them imploringly, I won't have them die because of me. I can't even believe he suggested it. He looks at me for a moment and then begins nodding his head.
"As you wish my darling but where I'm taking you, you may end up wishing I had killed them. At least I'll have made it quick, I doubt the brothers will be as obliging. Lets go, the plane is going to be leaving soon and it's time to board. You two will come quietly, try to run or make a scene and I will kill you. Do you understand?" They look to me.
"Please, just do what he says." At this they nod and we begin our trek to the private plane boarding area. Just when I think we're going to get lucky as I doubt those two have passports and I know I don't, I realize that the security man has obviously been paid as has the customs man, as they wave us straight through without checking our papers. Actually, if I'm not mistaken, the customs man is a vampire. I catch a glimpse of red eyes just before he turns away from me again.
Before I know it, we're on the plane and it's taxiing into position. Then we're in the air and my hope falls away with the sight of Denver below us.
Edward
It's finally time. I have to time this properly. What with my finally making a solid decision I only have a few minutes to get Bella, get out and get to the airport before Jasper gets back having been alerted by Alice. I've kept my decisions swirling as I've stood out here, downwind from my dear brother and sister and their guests, and now- as I hear the party I engineered getting louder and louder; and can hear Bella's breathing evening out and the other four getting more frustrated at the noise in their minds- I know the time is right.
I flit across the parking lot and try the door. Good, she didn't lock it. Probably in anticipation of my brother. I enter the room quietly and there she is. My beautiful Bella. She's already sound asleep, but I need her to not wake up until we're well on our way and she can't do anything about it. So I pull the small bottle of chloroform out of my pocket and grab a wash cloth from the bathroom.
Thanks to one of my many degrees, I know just how much to administer to get my desired effect- just enough to keep her asleep for about thirty minutes. That should have her waking up just before the airport. I gently place the rag across her nose and mouth and she wakes, just a bit before the drug starts working.
Once she's totally out I throw the rag on the bed and lift her into my arms and carry her out, shifting her to one arm as I close the door. I figure I have another fifteen minutes before Alice calls the others, and Jasper, and they come running out of the room, so shifting her again to put her weight in both of my arms I flit back across the parking lot to the street beyond where I've parked my car.
I gently lay her in the back seat and get in and head out, tires screeching with my need to get away fast. I planned this down to the second. I made Alice think the party was for me to get my mind off Bella and I never decided where it would take place, I let the guys decide. As for the jet if I played my cards right she thinks after the party that I'm heading to Venice for a piano concert before taking it to Pisa to join the brothers for a little while before heading to London to attend Oxford for another degree in Medicine.
I called the brothers to inform them of my decision to visit for a little bit, since I never factored Bella into any of these decisions Alice won't know why I'm going to Volterra until just a few moments ago. I'll call Aro on the flight to let him know the real reason behind my visit. I checked to make sure there were no flights out of Boston to Pisa just before I got the drugs and Bella. If she saw any of this within the last twenty minutes, there's still nothing she can do about it because the next flight her and the family could take will put them an hour behind us, they'll have to take a commercial flight since I have the only private jet Carlisle likes to use. The flight for Jasper and them about two. I want them to follow us of course, so they can see that I was right and so Jasper will be punished for stealing my Bella from me.
The rental was for me to get to the airport and that's what Alice would have seen. I know she's probably called Jasper and everyone else by now. Not that it matters since we're almost to the airport. We're only ten minutes out and just as I predicted, Bella begins to stir. She sits up looking around her groggily and when her eyes land on me I can see the surprise and fear in them. Not what I wanted but now I have her I can work on getting her to love me again. The fear turns quickly to anger though, so I decide to try and sooth her.
"I'm glad you're awake Bella, my love. We're almost to the airport."
"Edward! What are you doing here?"
"Why I'm rescuing you of course my love, now that the pack isn't helping my brother keep you from me." I smile genuinely at her hoping to put her at ease. "I thought you'd be happy to see me," I say, but she just continues to glare and my smile begins to fade. Then she speaks and all that comes out of her mouth are the lies she keeps repeating.
"Why would you think that? I'm with my mate and I'm happy to be with him. Edward how many times do you have to be told that we aren't mates and that I don't want to be with you?" He's clearly got her brainwashed and I tell her so.
"Oh come now darling, we both know that's not true. He must have brainwashed you. I know once I get you away from his influence you'll remember you love me."
"How did you get to me. Rose and Emmett and Peter and Charlotte were there. Why didn't I wake up either?" I give her the run down and then find myself chuckling at her next words.
"You're delusional. We'll see who's right in the end." Oh we'll see alright and when she finds out I'm right she'll just have to deal with it.
After her announcement she sat back and crossed her arms over her chest. Clearly this was going to be harder than I thought. He's throughly brainwashed her against me. It's going to take a little longer than I thought to fix it. As we pull into the airport parking lot where I rented the car I remind her to keep her mouth shut and just follow me.
When her two friends from school show up unexpectedly I worry I may have to kill them, but then she suggests we take them with us and I agree. Better the brothers look like the bad guys than me. We head through the gate after I pay for our things and board our plane. I relax once we're off the ground because I know Jasper can't catch us now. I may be a match for him because of my thoughts but even I can't take on five vampires at once.
Over the hours, I watch Bella, ignoring the other two who are whispering- even though I can hear every word they say- about Bella being alive and what's going to happen to them. They'll be counted as one of the many missing persons in the world. They'll never be found because they'll probably never leave Volterra.
I watch as Bella begins to play with something around her neck. It looks like a necklace and I feel my anger rising that she's wearing something from him. As a matter of fact she needs to lose that crappy ring too. I ask her what it is and she confirms what I thought, a necklace. I ask her who gave it to her and she gets even more sarcastic and rude so I get up and head over to her, intent on ripping it from her neck.
Bella
I begin to play with the necklace Jasper gave me. The jasper stone heart almost as if I were touching him. My chest is beginning to ache and the further we get the more it hurts. It's at this moment that I want to kill Edward. He better be far away from me when I wake from the burning, if he thinks the brothers won't make him turn me or they turn me he's sadly mistaken, because I will hurt him. Badly.
He apparently has been watching me because I'm startled when he says, "what's that your touching Bella?"
"Not that it's any of your business Edward, but it's my necklace."
"Who gave it to you?"
"Again, none of your business."
I don't look at him once as I answer, so it surprises me when the next moment he's in front of me reaching for my necklace. His intention is clear.
"If you even think of touching this necklace Edward I'll make you regret it." I guess I said it with enough venom to surprise him, because he quickly leans back. But he never drops his hand and after a second he just smirks at me.
"Oh, and how do you plan on doing that Bella? I'm faster and stronger."
"Yes Edward you are, but you also have more to lose than me. If your goal had been to hurt me you would have done so by now, although taking me from my mate hurts me, so I know you won't. Therefore you won't chance the fact that I'll fight you tooth and nail to keep your hands off of this necklace and if you manage to remove it, when the brothers force you to change me, I'll kill you when I wake." He scoffs at my words.
"Don't be so dramatic Bella. It can't be that important and why do you continue to insist that monster is your mate? We both know its untrue."
"No Edward, your delusions make you think it is, I know it's not. Jasper, not the monster you make him out to be, is my mate and when he gets a hold of you the Volturi won't be able to save you, possibly not even Carlisle. You'll be lucky if he doesn't rip you limb from limb and burn your pieces one by one in front of you."
I turn away from him then, looking back out of the window, ignoring him completely. My body relaxes only once he's back in his seat. I didn't realize it at the time but I was ready to do just what I said, fight him tooth and nail. A few hours later and he's on the phone. I can barely hear his conversation, but I can get the gist. He's called the Voturi to finalize his plans and let them know he's coming early and it seems they'll be sending four of the Guard to meet us. Though Edward only told them about me. It took some smooth talking on his part to convince Aro I wasn't a danger, being a kidnapped human and all- apparently Aro said this to Edward at one point because Edward started spouting things about saving me and how it's not kidnapping when I'm his mate and Jasper stole me from him.
Angie and Eric get up and come over to me while Edward is on the phone.
"Bella, can you please tell us what's going on? Did you runaway? Did you think Charlie wouldn't accept Edward? Or is he kidnapping you? And why were you so afraid for us?"
I had hoped they wouldn't ask that last question, but I should have known better. Both are very intelligent and inquisitive by nature. Hopefully I can give them answers without telling them what Edward is. Perhaps that will save them from the brothers. I doubt it, but I still have to try. I decide something close to the truth is best, with a few lies and omissions to try and keep them safe.
"To answer your questions I have to tell you what's been going on since March. I can't divulge everything, but that's for YOUR safety. The less you know right now the better."
I tell them about being depressed and wanting to remember Edward, I leave out hearing his voice and of course anything to do with the pack. I lie and say that Jasper was in the meadow, that he didn't leave with the others because he liked the area, but decided to keep a low profile to avoid having to answer questions, that he, Rose and Emmett had graduated the year before helped them to understand his leaving the family, and that we decided to sneak around because we knew Charlie wasn't the biggest Cullen fan, not the real reason for our keeping us a secret.
I then lie and say Edward set up the accident to take me, I looked at him and dared him to contradict me but he kept his mouth shut thankfully- maybe he realized I needed to try and protect them and that his supposed love for me allowed him to let me make him the bad guy- and that he was indeed kidnapping me.
I told them the reason I was afraid for them was because if he could do what he did to get me because he was jealous of his foster brother, what could he do to them if he felt they threatened what he was doing. So best for all of us to cooperate until we got where we were going. I didn't tell them who we were going to see or why, thankfully they were content with the little I told them.
We finally made it to Pisa and I just hoped the others were already on their way and that the brothers would let me speak for myself and the other two. When we got off the plane we were met by three men and a woman. One of the men was huge, bigger than even Emmett, the other had a shrewd face and thoughtful eyes- clearly missing nothing, the third man took my breath away because it was almost like looking at a carbon copy of my mate and the first thought in my head about him was wondering if I had maybe found Jasper's long lost brother, Jeremiah.
The woman was small, a girl really as she didn't look older than fifteen, and had blonde hair- she looked a little snobby and mean. They all had red eyes. Two sets of eyes were trained on me. The other two were on Angie and Eric and when I looked, theirs were on the other two. The look in all four sets of eyes was unmistakable. They had the same look that I did when I looked at Jasper and he at me, as Leah and Jake had looked at Shannon and Alex and I just knew.
Angie and Eric wouldn't be leaving Volterra. Because they had found their mates in two of the Guard members and they would be joining the vampire world sooner or later.
a/n: it's about a 15 hour and 5 minute commercial flight (with connections) to Pisa from Denver. They're in a private jet so the only thing they have to do is refuel on the east coast, so I made the time only 15 hours. With the hour it takes to go from Pisa to Volterra it'll be a total of 16 hours from the start of the flight to arrival in Volterra.