NOTE: I do not own or have rights to Twilight or its characters. The material is the sole intellectual, property of its creator.

Chapter 38

In Darkness and Light

"Deeds done in darkness always come out in the light."

~Anonymous~

I could feel the pattern of sunlight that filtered in through the intricately cut lattice of the wooden window screen to fall on my skin. The cushioned window seat was the closest thing to a front porch rocking chair that I had in Uncle Aro's house. Back home, I would sit on the porch for hours in my favorite rocker and listen to the symphony of nature. From the window seat, I listened to the thrumming pulse of the quaint city of Volterra. At this hour, which I could only guess to be about mid-morning, the shuffle of foot traffic droned in my ears as a constant hum. The residences of the village were well into the business of the day. From the various small shops that lined the narrow streets, vendors called out in sing-song voices hawking their wares. The occasional car could be heard as taxies and the odd resident who could afford an automobile attempted the task of navigating the narrow medieval streets. More popular than cars however, and far more maneuverable in the narrow lanes, was the Vespa. The economical little mopeds buzzed like honey bees throughout the city; they flitted from place to place as if the city itself was a massive field of wild flowers.

A rustling beyond the front door of the apartment drew my attention away from the city. When the door opened, I heard Papa's light footsteps as he entered the apartment. A smile instantly came to my face.

"All alone Kitten," he asked as the cathedral bells in his voice tolled strangely somber notes. He closed the door behind him before continuing, "where's Benjamin?"

"He got a call from a potential client and went out to meet him."

"Did you feed?" the bells in his voice switched cadence from dark and somber to clinical as Doctor Cullen surfaced to pay a call, but I wasn't surprised or put off by it.

I nodded in reply. After the Council recessed, Ben took me down to the palazzo stables where Uncle Aro kept some deer for us to feed on. I wasn't thirsty, but I'd already promised Papa that I would feed whenever he or Ben insisted on me doing so.

I listened as Papa moved through the apartment, finally coming to rest at the large table where the Code of Law and other important documents were laid out. When I heard papers shuffling, I knew Papa was back at work. I settled back into my seat and allowed my attention to become split; half of my mind focused on the sounds of the city beyond the window while the other half remained focused on Papa.

"I think Mama is still with Aunt Sulpicia," I offer in an attempt to break the awkward silence.

"That's fine," he answered as he shuffled through papers, "she'll return when she's ready."

As I continued to listen to him turning pages, something seemed off about him. I was accustomed to 'clinical mode' from Papa, but his current state was different in a way that I just couldn't put my finger on. I knew that the events of the High Council meeting must be weighing on him; they had Ben in an unusual mood too. My usually chivalrous husband had been a bit … well, crass … when we went to feed. I was almost glad when his potential client phoned him and wanted to meet.

"How was the library," I asked, trying once again to alleviate the awkward silence that settled into the apartment with Papa's arrival.

"Meditative," he answered absently, the dark noted returning to color the bells in his voice.

Wonderful, I thought as I turned my face towards the sunlight filtering through the lattice, Papa's mad at me too. We agreed, before Jane arrived to summon us, that he and Ben would do all the talking in the Council chambers. I only spoke up the first time so that the Council would know that I identified myself as Sarah de Monte Virun. I thought it would be helpful since this was one of the things Uncle Aro asked me about in the garden. I was just as mortified as everyone else when Caius insisted on my testimony. What did they expect me to do, plead the Fifth. I wasn't a legal expert like Ben, but I was fairly certain that the United States Bill of Rights was null and void in the Volturi Court.

"Papa, I'm sorry," I apologized honestly.

I hadn't meant to cause difficulties with the Council. Earlier, Ben complained that if things went sour because of my 'overly candid comments', it could prove disastrous. I knew the consequences well enough … it could mean the destruction of my parents and me.

"No need for apologies, child," Papa continued in his absent, somber tone, "you've done nothing wrong."

Though I couldn't see him, I could imagine him all too well combing through the papers scattered before him as he dismissed me without so much as looking in my direction.

Not long after Papa's dismissal of my apology died in the silence of the room, I heard the faint buzzing of his phone. It must have been a text message, because he didn't answer it with his usual 'Hello, this Carlisle'.

"Yes, of course," I heard him sigh at the device as he quickly typed a response and then exit his phone. He rose from his place at the table then and slowly approached me.

"May I sit with you," he asked. The bells of his voice now peeled with the rich warm tones that I was more accustomed to hearing from him.

I couldn't help the feeling of dread that raced through me as I scooted over to allow Papa to sit beside me. My father always delivered bad news as gently as possible. He detested hurting anyone.

Before he could speak, his phone buzzed again.

"Your sister is quite persistent," he informed me as he read the second text message and typed a response.

"Which one," I insisted as a new wave of anxiety coursed through me. "Is everything ok back home … Bart's not in trouble is he …"

"Easy Sarah," Papa soothed as he wrapped one arm around my shoulders. "It was Alice, and everything back in Forks is just fine. She was offering me some insightful advice on … well, a personal matter."

When I was calm again, he unwound his arm from my shoulders and gently took my hand instead, "It is I who owes you an apology … for being distant and clinical when you needed my comfort."

"It's ok; I just figured you were mad at me too."

"Benjamin expressed his displeasure, I take it."

I nodded, "he grumbled about my testimony and said I might well have cost you, Mama, and me our lives. Maybe he's right, but what else could I do? I couldn't just tell lies Papa."

"I know Kitten," he soothed.

"So … you and Mama aren't angry?"

He was silent for several minutes before he spoke, "Of course not. You spoke with confidence and passion before the Council and we are very proud of you."

We sat quietly for a time and I soaked up Papa's comforting presence like a plant soaks up water from the earth. Unfortunately it did little to quell the tide of disturbed thoughts set in motion by my husband's harsh words. If I caused the destruction of my parents, I would bare that painful shame on my soul into the hereafter. The very thought of it made me want to wretch.

"Kitten, are you alright … you look even paler than one of our kind should?"

I tried to hold back, but the gentle nudge provided by Papa's question triggered the torrent of my pent-up fears. "They're going to kill you and Mama too … all because of me! I'm the one who wanted to be a vampire again, you said my return to humanity was a blessing and I wouldn't listen. But worse, when your lives were clearly in the balance along with mine, I couldn't just say 'I belong to Benjamin's coven' … I couldn't bring myself to say the words that would spare the two people that I love more than my own life. If they want to kill me … well that's fine, but …"

"Stop, Sarah" Papa's voice didn't rise above its usual conversational volume, but the tone of the cathedral bells held a stern edge. "Your death most certainly is not fine … it isn't fine with me, nor is it fine with Esme. I can tell you with the upmost authority that it is not fine with Benjamin … nor would it be fine with your son. It wouldn't be fine with the rest of your family either, nor with anyone who care for you and holds you dear … including Aro, Sulpicia, and Marcus."

"But this is all my fault Papa."

"Is it," he asked thoughtfully, "take a closer look Kitten. There is only one individual spearheading this inquisition … only one individual who wishes to see your destruction."

"Caius," the name fell like a stone from my lips as I thought of the Volturi Lord with the raging forest fire in his voice, "he's always hated me."

"Indeed," Papa agreed sadly. "But I fear this goes well beyond a matter of unresolved animosity. Caius is up to some dark and perverse mischief. The scope of his fiendish machinations could prove world shattering."

"What makes you say that Papa?"

He sighed heavily then, and there was a long pause before he spoke again. "Because he sought me out while I was in the library … and he tried to convince me that the only way to save Esme, myself, and the rest of my family … was for you to die by my hand."

"He wanted you to kill me," I could hardly believe what I was hearing.

"Yes. I wasn't going to tell you about the encounter because I didn't wish to cause you further distress," Papa sighed again and I could imagine him running a frustrated hand through his short blond hair. "Make no mistake child, Caius is up to some malicious scheme and I fear he's using this whole re-transformation episode as a distraction to keep us from seeing his true intentions."

"You're going to let Uncle Aro know about this aren't you," I insisted. If Caius was up to no good, then his brothers should be aware of his treachery.

"Of course, I was planning to tell Aro all about it just as soon as I can manage a private moment with him."

AN: Yes, he came clean to Sarah … well sort of. My opening quote about deeds done in darkness has its origins in various lines of scripture. It's a phrase I've heard often in my life from numerous people, so I listed its source as anonymous.

The text conversation that Sarah missed:

Alice to Carlisle: 'Get a grip Carlisle. You're scaring the hell of Sarah!'

Carlisle to Alice: 'Sorry, still thinking about what I almost did. It's hard to come back after that and act natural.'

Alice to Carlisle: 'I don't care how hard it is, she thinks you're angry at her for telling the truth. Ben was a total ass when he took her to feed. He all but told her that the three of you would die because of her testimony. DO SOMETHING!'

Carlisle to Alice: 'Oh dear, we can't have that. I'm on it.'