Chapter 37 – Announcements

"Um… wow," Rosalie said after I finished telling them everything.

"Yeah, wow is right," Emmett agreed. "Who would have thought that the real villain in all of this was your long lost, presumed dead, mother. Garrett, you must be so fucking proud. I know I'd be if I fathered such a ruthless conniving monster bitch like that."

"Why do I always find myself wanting to slap you?" Rose asked him.

"This is not my doing," Garrett seethed. "It was Kate's parents. They must have raised her with their ideals. She is a Higginbotham through and through."

"We must do something," Carmen said emotionally. "They have our loved ones. I can only imagine the torment Esme is going through, locked inside the depths of her mind. I knew that she would never behave that way of her own free will."

"And my father," Rosalie added. "It must be killing him knowing what state we're all in. He was probably told we were safe as a way to get him to continue to work for them. That's the only reason he worked for them before."

"But why not have Garrett work for them as well?" Carmen questioned. "You used to work in that lab too, no?"

"Yes, I did," Garrett confirmed. "But after Renée was born, I was imprisoned, and I assumed it was shut down. She must have reopened it."

"I wonder why she never brought you back in?" Emmett mused. "She must have known Arostali had you. He hasn't even owned you very long."

"She was so… hateful of all vampires," I told them. "She didn't even care when I told her that her father was here. It's like he was no more important to her than the vampire DNA that they're using for the I.M.s."

"It's the Higginbotham way of thinking," Garrett continued. "They viewed all creatures as being beneath them. They succeeded in making my daughter hate even herself."

"Sounds to me like the only one she doesn't hate is herself," Emmett disagreed.

"She hates herself," Garrett repeated assuredly. "Which is why she is acting out in this way. She can't kill the monster she is, so she will turn everyone else into monsters as well."

"Or destroy the entire world trying," I added. "She needs to be stopped, no matter the cost," I said to Garrett meaningfully. If the only way to stop her was by killing her, then so be it. I understood that, and I needed to make sure Garrett did too.

He didn't respond to my words verbally, but he did sigh, and then nod once in defeat. I knew it had to be difficult for him. His infant daughter had been ripped from his arms, only to be raised by the worst family to ever walk the earth. He was just coming to terms with being told she was dead, and now to find out she is actually still alive, but that we were going to have to kill her. It was hard enough for me, and I absolutely loathed her at that point, so I could only imagine his pain.

"Do you really think she was telling you the truth about Edward being her mate?" Rose asked me gently.

"No," I said as confidently as I was capable of, but a tear betrayed me by rolling down my cheek. "I don't know. I don't know anything anymore. I wasn't venomous when I bit him. Originally, he didn't even understand why he bit me. We didn't know about the whole mating thing until Eleazar told us. I mean… they are both half vampire, whereas I'm just a quarter vampire… and they were both alive long before I was. I guess it would make sense for him and…" I couldn't even say the word 'her' when referring to my mother in that context. It was all so raw and excruciatingly disturbing. "Everything is just really fucked up now."

"But really, what's the big deal?" Emmett questioned. "I mean, say they are mates; so what?"

"So what?" Rosalie spat. "If it's true it means she has been sleeping with her mother's mate? Like Bella said, that is really fucked up."

"Why? The mating bond isn't sexual. Don't get me wrong, I'd fuck the shit out of you if I could, but I highly doubt your dad would want to fuck his mate… I mean, maybe he would, if he was into that sort of thing. I'm not judging!" Emmett said with a look of slight confusion on his face.

Rosalie rolled her eyes, but Carmen was quick to save him. "When I was human, I was attracted to both men and women, but I never had any romantic feelings for Esme. I cherish her more like a sister."

"Yeah, and didn't you say you knew of a mother and daughter mated duo?" Em questioned.

Rosalie huffed. "Yes, but unlike them, this is a betrayal. Bella considered Edward her mate. She bit him. Now he has another set of teeth marks in his neck. Romantic or not, I know this must be painful for her." She turned back to me. "I love my brother, but I'm really angry at him right now. I'm so sorry this is happening to you."

"I blame myself," Emmett added. "I didn't understand the mating bond enough to teach him about it. He should have never bitten you. I'm sorry too, Bella. I love you like a little sister, but you may be my enemy now."

"What?" Rose and I asked at the same time.

"Look, I raised Edward. I protected him, and taught him everything he knows. I love that kid as if he were my own. Plus, he is my mate's little brother. No matter what path he goes down, I gotta follow. If he is on Team Renée with the whole world domination thing now, then so am I."

"No, you're not," Rosalie told him assuredly. "You know I'd do anything for my brother, but this just feels so wrong. Maybe he is being controlled like Esme. All I know for sure is that he loves Bella, and he would want us to stick by her and make sure she gets out of this thing alive."

"It doesn't have to be a choice between the two," Emmett argued. "We can still be friends with Bella; I'll even vouch for her to the new boss lady."

"Bella is trying to help us break free, not be enslaved by a new owner!" Rose snapped at him.

"We need to face facts," Emmett continued. "We are locked in this cage, so the chances are we can't beat her. Besides, the numbers are stacked against us, and we have no clear path out of this thing. We can all be together again if we just give in to all this. Even your dad is here in this building, and if we rebel, she may kill him for all we know."

Rosalie stared at him dumbfounded for a moment, and then she casually looked back at me. "Did your mother have Edward's bite mark on her neck?"

I furrowed my brows. "Not that I saw, but she didn't exactly pull her collar down to show me."

"If you were close enough to her to hold her hand, you should have been able to smell it. Our venom smells unique, which is another function of the mating bite; other vampires can smell when a vampire is mated, so they know they aren't a possible mate for them. Plus, it's a warning that if you mess with that vampire, you'll have to deal with its mate as well."

I shook my head. "I didn't smell Edward at all… but I don't really know what Edward smells like. My vampire senses were dormant the last time we were together."

"Did you smell any other scent other than hers?" Carmen asked.

I shrugged. "There were a lot of different scents. We passed through the labs, and there were a wide variety of creatures working there."

"Scents can linger in the air and on fabrics, but when you were alone with her, you should still smell her mate as strongly as if he was in the same room. The venom left in the neck of the mating bite is that potent."

"But all of you have been in fights with other vampires, where those vampires have left offensive bite wounds, so why do we not still smell their venom in you?" I asked perplexed.

"The mating bite is distinctive," Garrett jumped in. "If Emmett and I were fighting, even to the death, I wouldn't bite his neck. That is almost an unspoken taboo amongst our species. The neck is a private spot between mates. It would be like a stranger touching you inappropriately, except even more so. It goes against our very nature to bite there unless it is our mate. That being said, the neck is the only location in which the venom is locked in place permanently. Venom from all other bites, in any other location on the body, disappears almost immediately."

"So, that would mean Bella is definitely Edward's mate," Rosalie decided. "He bit her there, so…"

"But he is half-human, and was letting his hormones mess with his vampire senses. Plus, Renée bit him, so…" Emmett argued with a shrug.

"Renée, who is also half human," Rose rebuffed.

"There must be a mistake in here somewhere," Carmen offered. "Whether the mistake was Edward's when he bit Bella, or Renée's when she bit Edward. They can't both be natural. One of them must have committed the ultimate vampire sacrilege."

"But Edward wasn't aware of the mating bite and what it meant," Emmett said, dutifully maintaining his unyielding support of his pseudo little brother.

"Renée must have known," Rose retorted.

"Exactly!" Emmett agreed. "She knew, and she bit him, so that means she must be his true mate."

"Or just evil as fuck," Carmen mumbled.

"I'm with her on this one," Rose agreed.

"Guys, I don't mean to butt into vampire business and all," Jake interjected. "But I gotta say, it sucks that Edward found his true mate, but you can't really blame him either. I was once in love with a girl named Emily. She was perfect. We were best friends, grew up together, I would have sworn up and down she was the love of my life, and I would never, could never, love anyone else or betray her. But then I met Leah, and as much as I hated hurting Emily, Leah is my soulmate. Even with all her faults, and despite how much we fight and bicker, my soul is irrevocably hers. Kind of sounds like this situation. Regardless of how much Edward may have loved you, if he was meant for this other chick, then there isn't anything he can do about it. It's not even a choice."

We were all quiet as we considered what he was saying, but Rose couldn't be quiet long. "Well, who the fuck asked you? As you said, this is vampire business, so go back to the other side of your cage and lick your crotch or something."

"Wow, Rosalie, that hurt. And here I thought we had grown past dog insults," Jake said, dramatically offended. "You know, I actually missed you since we've been separated."

She snorted. "Shows how stupid you are."

"Aw, you missed him too," Emmett ratted her out. "She was totally bummed after you left."

She rolled her eyes and shook her head. "Anyway, it doesn't matter if Renée is Edward's real mate or not. We are going to help Bella put a stop to all these horrible tournaments, because it's the right thing to do. We are going to free everyone, and let all creatures create lives for themselves outside of cages. I liked what Bella was saying about making a set of rules for everyone to follow so we can all peacefully coexist. That's the world I want to live in, and I'm not letting my brother's insane, possible mate, get in the way of that. At least if Renée dies in the process he can be free of her. No offense, Garrett."

"Or, he'll be forced to live in the excruciating abyss of pain for eternity, the way all other vampires do who lose their mates," Emmett said casually.

"Well, we can help him through it," she replied steadfast.

Emmett took a deep breath. "Okay, so we go ahead with the plan… of not having a plan, other than taking out the owners and stopping the I.M.s."

"Sounds like a good plan to me," Carmen agreed.

"But I'm not fighting Edward if it comes down to that," Emmett said firmly.

"Edward is my baby brother," Rosalie told him, with sudden intensity. "I was there and witnessed his birth. I was the first person to ever hold him. Do you think I want to go against him? And Esme - I love her like a second mother. Like, a real mother, not the shitty one Bella has. If she is forced to fight against us, I will certainly take her out because Esme was always about doing the right thing, and this is the right thing. If she was of sound mind, I know she would be fighting right along side of us."

"Well, I'm not so sure about that," Emmett disagreed. "Edward is her son. I can't imagine anyone going against their kid like that."

"I am," Garrett told him. "Renée is my child, but I can not follow her on this. It is because I love her, that I must do whatever I can to stop her, and save her from herself."

Emmett reluctantly nodded, but it was heavyhearted. "Okay, let's do this. Let's save the fucking world by killing a bunch of rich people."

Everyone looked at each other in agreement, but I had a hard time meeting anyone's eyes. I was trying to be strong and force myself to keep it all together, but I honestly felt like I was dying inside. Edward was my mate, and my mother was the one who defiled him… but what if she was right and it was the other way around? It was all so confusing, and utterly heartbreaking any way I looked at it. My grief was paralyzing; I needed to bury it if we even had the hope of defeating my mother.

But the biggest fear we all had, was the potential of facing our loved ones in battle. Would they be fighting for my mother? And if so, could we defeat them without killing them, and somehow manage to pick up the pieces in the aftermath? I suppose we wouldn't know until it happened.

…

We spent the rest of the evening in quiet introspection. There really wasn't anything left to discuss, and the more we tried to predict the unpredictable, the more frustrated and anxious we became, which certainly wasn't helping the situation.

The next morning came and went, and we were given what could be our last feeding. I was issued raw meat, of course, but thankfully they weren't watching us, and each of the vampires gave me a portion of their blood rations. As I was finishing off Rosalie's, thankfully sucking it out of the pouch and not her lips, I was reminded of something…

"Garrett, is there anything you can do with this?" I asked, handing him the small electric collar remote I had stashed in my corset. I didn't have much hope, but if anyone had a chance of making it useful, it was Garrett, due to his previous stint as a scientist.

"Actually, I may be able to figure out something since I'm the one who first invented the shock collar."

"You did?" I asked surprised.

"Many, many, decades ago. I discovered a particular voltage of electricity that was harmful to vampires, and together with the human scientists, we were able to harness that power into means to control vampires, such as the bars and the collars."

"So, we have you to thank for this shit?" Emmett growled at him while tugging on his collar.

"Wait, where did your collar go?" Rose asked me, just now noticing mine was missing. "And how did you get that?" she questioned, pointing at the remote.

"My mother took it off, and I guess forgot to put it back on. I snuck this remote off the desk. What can you do with it?" I asked Garrett.

"Well, it might take a little time, but I may be able to fiddle with it in a way to deactivate the arena."

"But why would you need to do that?" Emmett wondered. "Doesn't Arostali and Renée's entire plan rest on turning off the arena, so we can break out and kill the politicians?"

"At this point, we can't be sure what their plan is. We don't know what they were or weren't being honest about, so it's best to be prepared for anything," Carmen told him.

Garrett got right to work deconstructing the remote, but he needed one other thing to make it work the way he needed it to.

"I need one of these collars," he said unexpectedly.

"They will shock us if we pull at them," Rosalie told him, which only irritated him.

"Yes, I am aware, but I need one. One of you need to volunteer to remove yours."

"The electrical current is too strong. We will be out of it for days and unable to fight tonight," Carmen told him.

"But I think if I have the code locked in these collars' mainframe, I can reprogram them, even without a computer. I just need both pieces."

"Okay, I'll take mine off," Emmett said bravely. "I'm the biggest, so I can withstand the shock the most."

"They're tailor-made for each vampire's unique strength, so your shock setting is probably the highest amongst us," Garrett told him.

"I'll do it," Rose volunteered.

"No, let me," Carmen stepped forward. "It has to be me. I want to defeat them as much as any of you, but if they put me against Esme, I can't continue."

"It's going to be hard for all of us," Rosalie told her.

"Yes, fighting loved ones is difficult, but fighting a mate is not possible. As much as I want to, I can't."

"She's right," Garrett agreed. "Vampires are physically incapable of fighting their mate. Esme will certainly defeat her if they are put against each other."

"Or she will be the key to beating Esme," Emmett offered. "The mating bond goes both ways, so Esme can't fight her either. Carmen can, however, corner her and subdue her, right?"

"Not if Esme is being controlled by Chelsea," Rosalie denied. "I'm telling you, her powers are so strong."

"Esme was catatonic," I confirmed. "She is being completely controlled by my mother, presumably using Chelsea."

"Safest bet is to take you out of the equation," Garrett said apologetically.

Carmen nodded, and then slowly reached up to her collar.

"Stop!" Garrett shouted at her. "You will lose consciousness before you can manage to get it off. Someone else must remove it for you."

"But that will put two of us out of the match," Rose disagreed.

"No, I'll do it," I said determinedly. "The shock hurts, but I can withstand it, and I heal fast. I should be fine by the time the battle begins."

"You withstood it because you felt that phantom cold wet sensation," Rose reminded me. "This could stop you heart, for all we know."

I shrugged. "Well, maybe that's not such a bad thing. When Edward's heart was stopped it made him even stronger."

"You also said it made him like a crazed zombie," Rose retorted.

"It did… but he basically died first, so this will be different. Who knows, maybe the shock will reset my heart into a more natural rhythm."

"Your heart is in a perfect rhythm for you," Garrett told me unexpectedly. "Granted, it's not a human rhythm, but it's perfectly strong considering you're a hybrid."

"Oh," I said, realizing he was right and I probably never had a heart condition to begin with. All that worry about me dropping dead at any given time was for nothing. "So, it's settled then; I'll be the one to take off her collar."

"We don't know what this will do to your heart," Garrett countered. "As the only one with a heartbeat in this cage, you are probably the worst choice for this."

"Except for the fact that I have been shocked a few times already, and I'm fine. If I die, just get my heart restarted with CPR or something. Ok? Ok. Let's stop arguing and just do this already," I insisted before turning to Carmen. "Are you ready?"

She nodded. "Do it."

"Lock your jaw so you don't bite your tongue off," Garrett warned us.

We both nodded at him, and then we nodded at each other. I reached up for her collar, locked my jaw and braced myself, and then pulled.

The collar was made of a much stronger metal compound than I was expecting, and the moment I tugged on it, even a little, I was jolted with the worse shock I had ever experienced. It was so strong, that both Carmen and I were thrown to the ground violently, and I even momentarily lost my sight.

"Okay, that sucked. How are these so much stronger than the bars?" I questioned as I fought my way to my feet.

Rose and Garrett both helped me stand, and Emmett helped Carmen.

"The tech here is more advanced than what Arostali has," Garrett explained. "This really isn't worth all this. We don't even know if it will be needed."

"Better to have it than wish we had it," I told him, and then turned back to Carmen. "Now that I know what to expect, I'll make sure to hang on better this time. Are you ready to go again?"

She reluctantly nodded, but didn't voice it, and I couldn't help but wonder if she could even speak at all right then. The pain on her face was extreme, but she managed to bury it as much as possible.

I hated hurting her, but I just had a gut feeling it would be necessary.

I took a deep breath, and reached for her collar again. Knowing what to expect made the anticipation both better and worse, but I pushed through it, and gathered all my strength to break it as quickly as possible.

Again, the pain was immeasurable. I blacked out, and when I reopened my eyes, I was back on the ground, and I legitimately saw stars exploding in my vision.

"Ouch," I said, feeling dizzy as I was being helped to my feet once more.

"Thank god you're okay," Rosalie cooed in a rush. "We weren't sure if you were going to wake up, and now the guards are coming."

"Was I unconscious?" I asked surprised.

"Yeah, for like twenty minutes," Em confirmed.

"Is Carmen…?" My eyes wheeled around for her, and my heart sank when I saw her still lying on the ground.

"She will be fine. She just needs time to recover," Garrett told me.

"I rammed the electrified gates at Arostali's once, and I was out for three days. It was awesome!" Em said enthusiastically.

"Did it at least work?" I asked, but I didn't need an answer since I spotted Carmen's broken collar in Garrett's hands as he was trying to conceal it before the guards came. "What are we going to tell them about Carmen?"

"We're out of time to discuss it," Rosalie mumbled as the sound of heavy boots thundered towards us.

We figured they were coming because the removal of Carmen's collar must have sounded an alarm to them, but when they arrived in front of our cell, they were surprised to see her on the floor.

"What happened with that one?" one of the guards asked.

"I decapitated her," I told him quickly. "She mouthed off, so I took her out."

"We reattached the head, but she will be unconscious for a few days," Garrett added.

One of the guards looked pissed and quickly retreated, but the others continued with their business. "Take the four," one of the men instructed the others.

More men entered the facility, and they all teamed up to escort certain creatures from their cages. It was easy to presume they were taking the twenty five who were selected to be in the fight, but it was too early in the day for the main event, so we weren't exactly sure where they were taking us.

Jake and his friend, Seth, were being escorted out behind us, and we were following some of the werewolves. We were all brought to the arena, where we were kept off to the side while an announcer entered the ring. Even from that position, I could see that the stadium was mostly empty, except for the small crowd of owners in the front row.

"Gentlemen, these are your Apex 25 competitors," the announcer declared. "In no particular order, first up is from House Whitfield, the demon, Hades!"

The gate in front of us opened, and the guards issued in the horned creature that had been standing in front of us, and then the gate locked again. One by one, the creatures were all introduced, classified by breed and owner house. I stopped paying attention after the third werewolf, but when House Newton was announced, I couldn't help but try to get in a better position to see Michael and Lauren. Not that it mattered, but I wondered if they knew what happened to us? Lauren obviously had a crush on Edward, and with her disdain for vampires, I only wished I had been there to see the look on her face when that truth was exposed.

After Jacob and Seth were escorted out, the announcer introduced, "House Arostali."

Emmett, Rosalie, and Garrett were all named by their fighting aliases, but as I waited for my own name to be called, I was shocked when they moved on to the next house without calling me out.

The rest of the creatures were soon taken into the ring, and I was the last one standing behind the gate. I briefly wondered if my mother had changed her mind about making me fight, but then I was absolutely flabbergasted by the words that came out of the announcer's mouth next.

"And fighting for House Swan, humanoid hybrid, Cigno Nera!"

I wasn't sure why I was classified as a 'humanoid hybrid', but I didn't really care either; my sudden change in houses was what was most baffling. Unfortunately, I didn't exactly have time to ponder any of it. The gate opened for me, and I was ushered into the arena. I locked eyes with my friends, and their shocked faces mirrored my own, but when I spotted my father in the audience, his face looked absolutely petrified. It was obvious he knew nothing about my change in houses, and he was both livid and more terrified than I had ever seen him before. Under his emotional distress, I could see that he was even more gaunt and pale than the last time I saw him. I was still upset about his part in everything, but after speaking to my mother, my dad was a damn near saint; in that moment, all I wanted to do was find a way to help him.

Of course, concern for my father was quickly overshadowed…

"And last, but certainly not least, scoring the highest amongst all the entries during the assessments, for House Higginbotham, world renowned vampire hybrid, Daemon!"

I gasped, and my heart jumped into my throat as the name echoed through the stadium. Was he really there?

Opposite of where we had entered the arena, a second gate opened, and out strutted the most physically beautiful creature I had ever seen. Everything about him was perfect: his face, his physique, his posture – there wasn't even a hair out of place. He was almost too perfect in a way that didn't really make sense. He had always been beyond beautiful, but now there was something almost unnatural about his beauty. As he swaggered around the arena, and basked in the excitement of the owners' applause, his eyes swept right over me as if I was no one to him, and I immediately understood why…

"That wasn't him," I told the others as soon as we were all locked back in our cells.

"Uh, I know he was all shiny and shit, but unless he has some kind of identical twin out there, that was Edward," Emmett said apologetically.

"Emmett, is your nose even working?" Rose asked irritated. "Bella is right, that thing didn't smell anything like Edward, so it wasn't him."

"How could you smell anything in that arena?" he retorted. "How can you smell anything in here? All these fucking shit smelling baboons mask everything."

"The creature that looked like Edward was a shifter," Jacob informed us. I walked over to where our two cages were only separated by bars, and waited for Jake to continue. "I recognized the scent immediately. Ephraim Black… my great-great-grandfather. He had gone missing shortly after his son, my great-grandfather, was born. The reason I recognize his scent is because my dad used to have an old shirt of his, and he made sure we all knew his smell, just in case he ever showed back up."

"Scents that old can be contaminated with other scents," one of the other shifters suggested.

"It was him," Jake insisted. "I'm sure of it. The question is, why would they have a shifter posing as Edward?"

"I can only think of two reasons," Garrett mused. "Either he refused to cooperate with whatever they wanted him to do… or he's dead," he said carefully while looking at me.

The fear of his potential death had been plaguing me, but knowing he had a shapeshifter stand in, only gave me a renewed spark of hope. Edward wasn't dead, even without feeling that connection to him anymore, I knew deep inside my heart he was still alive. My mother had wanted him far too long for her to allow him to be killed, even if he was being combative. Which could only mean he was resisting them, and to me that was all the conformation I needed that he was still on our side.

Somehow, someway, I was going to find him, it was only a matter of time, and that time was just about here…

...

***A/N: I know I promised Edward's return in this chapter, but it got too long, so it had to be pushed off to the next. I apologize for that. The end is near! :o