The Black Swan: Jasper & Bella Pairing

CHAPTER 50 - THE LAST RECRUIT


Act One: Waves


La Push

Emily had just finished printing out the program for Paul's funeral. Sam looked over her shoulder, and saw Bella and Jasper's name listed. He yanked Emily out of her seat so she could face him. The papers she had been holding were now scattered at her feet. Her lover's eyes had transformed into black slits of fury. The hands that had caressed her shoulders moments ago were now digging into her flesh. She bit her lip so she wouldn't cry out in pain.

Breathe, Emily. Dear god, breathe, she told herself.

"What is wrong with you Emily?! Bella is no longer welcome here at La Push. Billy backs me up," Sam yelled.

The spittle from Sam's mouth wet Emily's face. Her eyes were transfixed by the dazzling whiteness of his teeth that flashed when he said, "here."

Emily closed her eyes and took another deep breath to stop her body from trembling. In a small voice she said: "Sam, they can help. Carlisle has been checking in on Rachel. She's bad. You know she is. If they can help her get through the ceremony, well . . ."

The sound rather than the sight of the chair she had been sitting on being ripped apart caused bile to rise in her throat. Sam growled at Emily. There was love, pain, menace, and frustration all mixed into that one drawn out sound. It was time to stop talking. The last time Sam exploded like this , well, . . . she was young and innocent. Now she knew better. As quietly as possible she backed away, putting ten feet of distance between Sam and herself.

"Damn you, Emily! I'm not the enemy. They are! I should have left Bella in the woods. She should have been the one to die. Not Paul!"

Sam stormed out of the house. Emily heard the terrible howl of pain and smelled the intense musky scent. Sam had phased. Emily fell to her knees and cried.

.oOo.

Bella

I was enjoying quiet time alone in the great room and sipping a mug of tea. The front door was locked, but the sliding glass doors in the kitchen leading to the terrace were unlocked. The sound of the door slamming shut threw me into a momentary panic. I frantically searched for my lighter and then froze when I saw Leah bursting into the room in a state of major distress.

"Leah!" I said.

Her lips trembled and then she burst into tears and fell at my feet.

"Leah, what's wrong?" I said as I pulled her up into my arms to hold her. She had cuts on her arms and bites. I recognized them for what they were. I stroked her beautiful black hair from the roots all through through the ends stopping at her shoulder blades, and waited for her to tell me.

Leah sat back and looked up at me. "It's so awful, Bella. We're fighting. Sam tried to attack Jake and I tried to protect Jake for Rachel's sake. Sam and I fought. I mean like really fought, you know? We should be together as one tribe and now everything is going to hell. Sam threatened Carlisle and prevented him from seeing Rachel. And Bella, you and Jasper can't show your face at La Push. Even Jake couldn't speak up for you," Leah said, sniffling.

I didn't know what to say.

The subtle scent of chocolate made Leah turn in the direction of the door. Nahuel had walked in with Jasper. They had been hunting. Nahuel had arrived two days after the Valentine's Day massacres. He had heard about the Quileutes, but at Jasper's and Carlisle's insistence, he was keeping a low profile. Now he stood at the threshold of the door, dressed only in his leather thong and feathers in all of his magnificence, and stared at Leah. She returned his gaze but without her usual cocky defiance. The first thought that came to mind was: Is this what they mean by imprinting?

Jasper flashed me a look that translated as What's going on?

"I am Nahuel," he said without taking his eyes off Leah.

Leah was speechless. I answered for her. "This is Leah," I said.

The two continued to look at each other.

"Bella, what's going on?" Jasper said.

I quickly summarized what I had learned from Leah. Jasper and I had planned to sing a duet. It was a song that meant a lot to Rachel and that she associated with Paul. Emily and Leah thought it would be a perfect song to help Rachel begin to heal and get closure. It seemed like a good idea.

Nahuel finally switched his gaze from Leah to me and then to Jasper and then back to Leah. He walked toward her and knelt before her. With gentleness he held out her arms and examined them.

"Harmed," he said with sadness.

Leah retracted her arms and burst into tears again.

"I can help," he said.

"How?" Jasper and I said.

Nahuel extended his hand to Leah. "Take me."

Jasper and I watched with open mouths as Leah stood up and took Nahuel's hand and swept out of the room.

.oOo.

Jake

Pop was cradling Rachel on his lap. Her legs were draped over the arms of his wheelchair. Her head lay limp against his chest as if she were paralyzed from the chest down. Rachel was such a chatter box. Her silence, even her silent tears, filled me with horror. It was like seeing Bella that time when Sam found her abandoned in the woods, except this was 100 times worse. I looked at my big sister. The one who bossed me around all the time. She was helpless, and I couldn't help her. Worse yet, Sam made me feel like it was my fault. And my father couldn't even look at me.

I smelled Leah's scent. Was she coming back to make nice with me after she and Sam got into it with each other? I threw them both out of my house. The fight just made Rachel hysterical. Things were a little more manageable when Carlisle and Esme were around. But even Pop told them to leave at Sam's insistence.

"Jake," Leah said when she barged into the house.

"Give it a rest, Leah. I don't want to hear any more shit about closure, cleansing of spirits and sage burning. Enough, all right?"

Leah brushed past me and knelt in front of Pop, holding out her arms to Rachel.

"Honey, you have to finish it. You have to send Paul's spirit back with your love. He adored you. You were his queen. Don't get on that plane without finishing it. If you don't want Bella and Jasper there, that's okay. They'll understand. But say it because that's how you really feel, and not because Sam and the others are telling you how you should feel. You know Bella loves you. She wants to be there for you."

"Shut up, Leah. Get out!" I yelled.

Just then a smell that reminded me of chocolate – the real deep dark chocolate we used for our hot cocoa – filled the room. I turned and saw this tall badass vampire wearing feathers over his privates. Wait, I detected a heartbeat. What was he? The dude just walked up to Pop and stood next to Leah. What?!

"Who are you?" I demanded.

"Nahuel," he said with a strange accent.

I didn't care what his name was. I just wanted to know who the hell he was and why he was at my house. And then I wondered if I was suffering from some kind of collective hysteria, because Pop looked at this dude in awe. He was muttering " Taha Aki." Maybe the stress was getting to him. Why else would he think this dude was the great Quileute warrior spirit? And what? Leah was supposed to be the Third Wife?

Because of the stepped up patrols, it wasn't long before Sam learned about the strange vampire dude in my house. He stormed inside of the house ready to pounce. Nahuel showed neither fear nor aggression. It was as if he were in a trance. Nothing Sam said or did disturbed Nahuel. Sam phased and then dragged Nahuel out the door with his teeth. Nahuel showed no resistance. This was all wrong. I followed them out the door.

"Stop it!" I shouted to Sam. I stared at the strange mixture of blood and venom on Sam's mouth. "Let him go. He's not a leech, or if he is, he's not like them."

I gave a challenging look to Sam's pack to stand down and not attack Nahuel. Sam phased back. He stood towering over Nahuel buck naked. Leah helped Nahuel up and then fixed a stony look at Sam. Emily walked up to Leah and Nahuel and then she looked at Sam.

"It's time to stop, Sam," Emily said. "We're all hurting real bad now. There will be more sorrows to come. That's what it means to be a warrior. But now is the time to pull together, okay? Let him go. Let go, Sam. Let go."

Sam looked at everyone. He phased back into a wolf and then vanished into the forest.

.oOo.

There is so much magnificence near the ocean.

On the day of Paul's funeral we carried his body up the rocky cliffs at First Beach and then discharged the board so that it would plunge into the depths of the Pacific Ocean. This was his home and his final resting place. With Jasper's mellow voice accompanied by his rhythmic strumming on an acoustic guitar, Bella singing harmony and Nahuel leading the other Quileutes with the hand drums, we gave our brother Paul a final tribute in the place he loved best: the ocean. The song was a fitting chant that described the essence of Paul's soul.

"Waves are coming in. Waves are coming in," went the song. Jasper's and Bella's harmonic voices made me feel better. The human, the mutant and the vampire were honoring the spirit of a fallen wolf warrior. What crazy universe was this? Sam and his pack brothers were out in the ocean catching the waves just as Paul would be doing if he were alive.

"There is so much magnificence . . ."

Now Emily was joining in and lending her voice.

"Near the ocean . . ."

Rachel handed me a board and I went into the ocean. Seth followed, then Leah and then finally Rachel.

"Waves are coming in. Waves are coming in . . ."

Paul had to be watching this Kumbaya moment, laughing his head off and saying: "Cut that shit out!" But maybe he was high –fiving the great wolf warrior in the sky and saying: "Damn! This is all for me." Or still maybe his spirit was whispering to Nahuel and telling him in between the beating of the drum: "Look after my brothers and sisters. Don't let the leeches get to them, you fucking leech! Ha!"

I was in the ocean balancing on my board. I looked at Rachel. She nodded that she was okay. The soft rain felt good on my skin.

"There is so much magnificence . . ."

I could still hear the singing that was now amplified by the chorus of all the Quileutes joining in. "Waves are coming in . . ."

The waters were rolling and forming a giant wave.

"Here it comes," I said as Rachel, Seth, Leah and I caught and rode the crest of the wave.

.oOo.

Jasper

It was difficult to be at the funeral service and not be moved by the emotion. I was the empath after all. Still, the grief was excruciating.

"Why do you bother, Jasper?" Peter had asked when I told him about the dispute over my participation in the service. "They don't really want you there," he said. "Can you blame them?"

True enough. But I was going to be there for Bella. And so on that most somber of occasions, I sang a song about the glory of life and nature as a farewell gesture to a member of the Quileutes who died at the hands of my mortal enemy. He died while trying to protect his fragile human mate. I could relate to that. We were brothers in arms.

Nahuel had only been with us for a few days by the time of funeral, but it was as if he had always been among the Quileutes. He said very little, but he commanded respect even from Sam Uley and Billy Black. But most importantly, he was there for Leah who presided over the ceremony. Anything she needed, he got it for her. He stood quietly at attention by her side like a living tower of strength: as if he was always meant to be at her side.

It occurred to me that part of sharing Bella's life was accepting the mortality of the people she loved and enduring the inevitable grief that would surely come. As an empath I had experienced all kinds of human emotions, including grief. But the difference was that I wasn't invested. This was different. I was going to remember this. This was bound to happen. Even Rémy was getting better. I just didn't expect to mourn someone Bella and I cared about so soon. Despite my differences with the Quileutes, I was actually fond of Jake, Leah and Seth and of course Charlie and increasingly Sue Clearwater. Their grief meant something to me. If I changed Bella now, would she still care about these people? Would she even remember? My experience with newborns was that they forgot most of their human experiences. Would Bella be that kind of newborn? And if she forgot, would I still care? Probably. Wasn't that interesting?

Bella and I didn't stay for the reception. We said our goodbyes and then left after the ceremony. When I turned to look for Nahuel, I saw that he was following Jake and Leah to the gathering place for the reception. How strange. Nahuel was half human and half vampire. The Quileutes cursed me because I was a leech. At best I was tolerated. But with Nahuel, they overlooked that part of his identity. He had a beating heart. He could eat and he could piss and shit. And he was strong - as strong as one of them. He was a living warrior spirit. They said goodbye to their brother Paul, but found in Nahuel a formidable warrior who could protect them, maybe, from the enemy who threatened them, fighting fire with fire,venom with venom.


Act Two: Tender Heart


Highland Park, Michigan

Victoria, Jaime and Riley were lounging around their lair. Lately, bulldozers were coming around to flatten the more distressed properties in the neighborhood. Their brief idyllic hideaway would have to come to an end, and they would have to find another place soon. For Victoria it was a new experience having a "place." But then everything was a new experience, like recruiting an army.

"Nonsense!" Victoria intoned stubbornly.

Victoria had just dismissed a complaint from Riley. He was getting tiresome again. Why did he care so much about the girl, the last army recruit, Bree? Victoria wondered.

"Victoria, why did you send Bree out with the guys without me? They don't leave enough for her to feed. She's just a baby," Riley said in a sharp tone that Victoria did not appreciate.

Jaime sat on the sidelines, literally. There was no way he was going to wade into that conversation.

Victoria tossed her hair and then approached the cracked mirror that was hanging in the room to admire herself. She was actually kissing her reflection. The day before, she had decided to pay a late night visit to a hair salon. She ordered a special treatment, knowing it would take a while. When the stylist was done, Victoria was the only customer in the salon. She praised the stylist and gave her a great tip and then promptly drained her. Of course she took the money and the tip back since the stylist would no longer need it. She kept telling that story over and over again. Jaime thought Victoria was getting out of control.

"She needs to toughen up," Victoria said with a bored expression, referring to Bree. Her eyes did not stray from her reflection. "You didn't escort the other newborns, and they made out fine – the ones who were tough enough of course."

Riley and Victoria snarled at each other and then Victoria switched to her sexy mama mode. It worked like a charm and things were all nice and cozy again between her and Riley. Jaime put on his ear buds and listened to his favorite jams while Riley and Victoria did their thing. And when Victoria was sated and went off to feed, Riley went in search of Bree. Jaime saw. Jaime knew. Jaime said nothing. If Victoria questioned him about where Riley had gone, he would simply say: "Hey, I'm Switzerland. I'm neutral. Leave me out of it."

Of course Jaime could see perfectly that Victoria was jealous of Bree. In fact Jaime had a soft spot for Bree himself, but he wasn't stupid enough to let Victoria see it. On the one hand he did see Victoria's point. This was war. If you couldn't cut it, then too bad. On the other hand, Bree was different. There was a gentleness about her that was just plain missing with everyone else. Frankly, there was no place for it in this situation. In fact one night when Jaime and Riley were alone and Riley was moping because Victoria chewed him out for something, Jaime thought about telling Riley to just take the girl and run. No one would run after them. Victoria didn't care enough. But he didn't. It was none of his business. And yet he found himself still making it his business.

Other than the amateur stuff between Riley and Victoria, things were going much better than Jaime expected. The army was expanding. They were pulling in people from the Northwest to the Midwest, from Washington, Idaho, and Illinois. Victoria kept demanding more experienced people from the Southern territories, but the boss, the real boss, was still unsure of Victoria and didn't want to give away any good fighters. So she sent the incompetent ones. They were not newborns, so they could control themselves and follow orders. That alone was a blessing, Jaime thought. Plus, they could help out with the newer recruits. The stakes were getting higher. Now was the time for Jaime to keep his head and watch his own back. There could be a big payoff if he kept his focus.

.oOo.

New Brunswick, Canada

Riley, Victoria and Jaime returned to a hilly shire town in Restigouche County. They were standing in a spot where a thriving pulp and paper mill once stood. The ground was frozen with ice and snow.

"We need a shock and awe campaign," Riley announced suddenly.

"What?" Victoria and Jaime asked.

"Shock and awe. You know like in the Iraq War," Riley said.

"What are you talking about?" Victoria quipped with irritation.

Riley smiled. "It's amazing how much you don't know."

Victoria kissed her teeth and snarled at Riley.

"We got one of the wolves. This is the time to strike while the iron is hot," Riley said. "We can't play it safe."

"Well, if you would do a better job training the newborns…" Victoria said.

"Well, you said you would be able to get more support and back up," Riley said. Victoria glared at Jaime who in turn shrugged, and said: "Hey, I don't make the decisions. It's between you and the boss."

"Pfff!" Victoria said.

Riley paced while Victoria ran her hands through her hair enjoying the silky smoothness of her hair.

Oh god! Give it a rest, Victoria. Jaime thought to himself as he watched Victoria preen using her compact mirror.

"Okay, let's give them what they want," Riley said suddenly.

"Which is?" Jaime asked.

"Let's just invade the Quileute lands. We've been skirting around the boundaries for months," Riley said.

"What?!" Jaime said.

"Yeah, they'll descend upon us and pick us off," Riley confirmed.

Victoria let out a dry laugh. She looked up from her compact mirror long enough to say: "Brilliant."

"Thank you," Riley said. "While they're rounding up the newborns, we'll sneak in and…"

"What?" Victoria said, looking up from her mirror.

"Hmm, you said the clairvoyant gets visions based on decisions…"

A fourth vampire, the one who was supposed to be watching over the newborns, interrupted the conversation.

"What is it?" Riley snapped.

"Um, the newborn, just escaped."

"So, why are you telling me? Go after her!" Riley yelled.

"I think she's headed back to her church. She said the children would give her blood. "

Riley kissed his teeth."What? You're afraid of human children?" Riley said scornfully.

"I don't think I can control myself. You have better control."

"Fine," Riley sighed.

Victoria rolled her eyes. "See what I mean, Jaime?"

"I'm Switzerland, remember? Leave me out of your mess," Jaime said.

"Amateur!" she yelled, casting a stony glare at Riley. "Fix it!"she said with a hiss.

She stood up and grabbed Jaime by the elbow and disappeared. Riley allowed himself the luxury of cradling his head in his hands for one second before taking off in search of Bree.

Fortunately, Riley was able to easily track Bree. She was very fast as a newborn, but, she had not had much of a head start. Her trail was fresh. He could get to her before all hell broke loose. In the short amount of time she had become a vampire, she had already gained the nickname Angel of Death. She liked to hang out at hospitals and prey on the sickest. But she had an almost morbid-like obsession with children. Victoria loathed children. "The dreadful little people," she called them. They were like vermin to her. On top of that she explained the mysterious Volturi had strict rules against turning children into vampires. So Victoria was extra careful to avoid that from happening.

Riley was finally able to catch up to Bree. She was perched on a tree watching children emerge from Sunday school.

"Look, Angela, there's Bree. Why is she in a tree?" her brother Thomas asked.

"What?" Angela said.

Seth stood up and distanced himself from Angela. He took a few deep breaths to determine the direction of the smells he picked up. He turned his attention to the nearby woods and started to break into a run.

"Where are you going, Seth?" Angela asked.

"I'll meet you back at your parents. I have to do something," Seth said.

"Come with me now!" Riley hissed as he climbed up the tree and swept Bree from the tree branch and kept running without looking back. They covered hundreds of miles of distance into the neighboring state border until he was sure the wolf had stopped chasing them. They came across a couple on a smoking break near the garbage cans of a restaurant in Great Falls, Montana, and drained them without anyone noticing.

"Bree, you can't wander off like that. You can't risk exposing yourself or us for that matter," Riley chided her.

"I saw the boys. They recognized me. Did you see them?" she said excitedly.

"Stupid girl, you almost got us killed. The werewolves are everywhere now."

"I don't understand."

Riley smiled at Bree. She was a blossoming young woman, not really a girl anymore. For a second he permitted himself to think what it would be like to just leave this madness, and Victoria, and lead a nomad existence with Bree. When he was with her, he remembered how fun it was just to be able to roam freely. Why did he let himself get caught up with Victoria? I love her, he said to himself. Yeah, but she doesn't love me, the tiny voice in his head said.

"I don't want to go back, Riley. She scares me,"Bree said.

"You're a fucking vampire, Bree. You're not afraid of anything. "

"I'm afraid, Riley. I want to go home," Bree cried.

Riley looked at Bree tenderly, an emotion he didn't think vampires were capable of feeling.

Bree stopped the tearless cries and grew quiet. She looked at Riley with an inscrutable expression. "I'm thirsty," she said in a soft voice.

Riley laughed. "We just fed."

"I'm thirsty,"she said again.

Riley put his arm around Bree's shoulders."Come on," he said with a hint of humor. "We'll see what we can rustle up for you," he said with a confidence he wasn't sure was entirely warranted.

.oOo.

The day after her spat with Riley, Victoria hacked into the Fork's school computer and found out Bella was enrolled in an independent study that included volunteering among the Quileutes. She showed Riley the schedule she was able to download. Bella was only at the high school a couple of hours a day. If she was volunteering, she would have to be at La Push in the afternoon.

"We take the fight directly to our enemy," Riley said.

"And what, just walk right into a trap and let them slaughter us?" Victoria said.

Riley gave a dry laugh.

"Don't you know how to play chess, Victoria? The bishop, queen and king are protected by the pawns. The only thing we need to know is how many pawns they have."

"So this is what you've been saving the girl for? Bree?" Victoria asked.

"Leave her out of it. I have a plan. I don't think we need to get more recruits. We just have to work a little smarter now," Riley said.

"But?"

"Leave it to me, Victoria," Riley said. "We can be ready to strike in a couple of weeks." Riley stood up and prepared to take off. "I need to do some due diligence to get everything all set. Just stay put."

Riley shot a look at Jaime who nodded in understanding. Victoria decided to take off and feed. Jaime went in the direction of the newest newborn recruit, Bree, to watch over her until Riley returned.

.oOo.

Denali, Alaska

And so it was that two weeks after the Valentine's Day killings, Riley traveled up to Alaska to pay a little visit to Irina. Riley had looked through Bree's phone and called up the images of the wedding she had stored. He was surprised by the number of vampires at the wedding, including Irina and her coven, at least as far as he could tell from the images. The only question he had was how many of the vampires were enlisted to protect Bella was important information to figure out how to test the defense network protecting Bella Swan.

Riley made quick work of following Irina's tracks. The advantage of dealing with the tawny-eyed coven was that they were predictable. He followed her and stayed hidden until he was sure he could speak to her alone.

"Irina," Riley said.

"What do you want?" Irina demanded, seemingly not surprised to see him.

"Information."

"Giving you information about the human is a dangerous proposition. I think I would like to keep my head, thank you. I don't know anything."

"Ah, brilliant. You told me something vital. She's still human. All right, let's make this easy so we can both be on our way. We'll just play a game. All you have to do is answer yes or no. All right? Does your coven have an alliance with the coven at Forks?"

"You're an idiot," she said.

As Riley watched an array of emotions flash across Irina's face, he realized it didn't matter how she answered the question. If there were an alliance, she would have notified her coven the minute she sensed him. She didn't. And time would tell if she later decided to speak about their meeting. For now it was worth the gamble.

"Is the human still under the protection of the wolves?" Riley pressed.

"Ha!"

"Right. That's a yes.

"How many are there?"

"How should I know? God!"

"Okay, habits. . . Has anything changed in her habits?" Riley asked.

Irina shrugged her shoulders.

Riley thought for a moment. "All right, is the clairvoyant with the human?"

Irina blinked.

"I'll take that as a no. Hmm, is the number of vampires protecting the human less than four including her mate?"

Irina rolled her eyes in exasperation.

"Not that I care one way or the other, but you do realize who Jasper is, right?"

"Spare me. He's a has been. I take it then, that he doesn't have a real army."

Irina laughed. She then folded her arms against her chest and fixed Riley with an imperious glare. "The interrogation is over. You know, Laurent cooperated with you, and look where it got him. I haven't forgotten that you and Victoria set him up. I'm not a fool," Irina said. she sidled up to Riley and sniffed. She pulled a long strand of gently waving red-flamed hair. She held up in front of Riley, tugging at the ends. "Ah, it looks like Victoria has discovered the miraculous wonders of a de-frizzing shampoo, then I guess her head and shoulders will look really nice sitting on Jasper's mantel."

"You're a disgrace," Riley said staring back at Irina. "You side with the man who killed your mate."

"Correction: I don't back losers. And if I were you I would be more afraid of falling under the radar of the Volturi for sloppiness than anything Jasper and his . . . posse could do to you."

Irina gave a fake smile and turned in the direction of her house. Riley watched Irina's regal form break into a run. He had to admit she was truly a thing of beauty. He picked up the faraway scent of a different vampire. He wasted no time and fled.


Act Three: Plan of Action


Denali, Alaska

Eleazar kissed Carmen's forehead."Do you mind if I go hunting alone tonight?" he asked.

"Of course, darling" she said hesitantly and then instinctively flashed a look at Alice.

Eleazar rolled his eyes in irritation. Alice smiled.

"Eleazar, old friend, I don't see that you have planned any mischief, but then again, have you?" Alice teased.

Irina snorted. "A lot good your visions are. You swore Laurent was not cheating and now. . . he's dead." Irina stood up and then swept out of the room.

Eleazar glared at Alice.

"Was that really necessary? You know how sensitive she is."

Alice just shrugged her shoulders.

Eleazar sighed and then looked at Garrett. "Perhaps you would care to join me, Garrett. I have changed my mind. Perhaps I would enjoy some company after all."

"What about me? Am I chopped liver or something?" Emmett intoned.

"Yes, Emmett, do come along, though I fail to see what chopped liver has to do with either of us," Eleazar joked.

Of the three men it was Garrett who was grateful for the outing. As much as he was enjoying settling into the coven, it was challenging maintaining the so-called vegetarian lifestyle. Wrestling games and other sports were effective distractions.

"Thank you Eleazar for masterminding that diversion. Irina will be all right, won't she?" Garrett said.

"Yes, I trust she will be," Eleazar said. He looked at his companions. Let's have a contest to see who can bring down the biggest bear."

"You're on," Emmett said and took off. Garrett followed. Eleazar waited a few seconds to make sure he was completely alone and then he pulled out his phone and pressed a number.

Meanwhile back at the Denali coven, Alice was playing a card game with Carmen, Tanya, Kate and Rosalie. A vision flashed through her mind. It was fleeting. She saw Marcus pacing in his tower in Italy.

"What is it, Alice?" Carmen asked nervously.

Alice smiled. "Nothing. Don't worry dear. The boys are out there playing their interminable wrestling games." She laughed in her typical breezy manner. Rosalie looked at her and then returned her attention to the cards in her hand.

.oOo.