p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14.08px;"I woke slowly and in a daze. The ground was cold and stony, the room was dark, I sat up leisurely and rubbed the side of my head I had been sleeping on. I picked a bit of sleep out of my eyes and then focused my sight on exactly where I was. My abnormally relaxed bones immediately stiffened. I scanned the room, moving my head in quick jerking movements, my hair slapping the sides of my face./p
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14.08px;""Where am I?"/p
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14.08px;"I felt stupid saying the words, I couldn't see anyone in the room and I had never really been one to talk to myself but I knew that Jane and Alec were probably close enough to hear me. I waited for a moment expecting an answer sooner than later./p
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14.08px;""You," a blood-chilling voice called out from the opposite side of the circular room I laid in, "are in Volterra, my dear."/p
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14.08px;"At first, I expected Edward to be the one talking but I didn't have the faintest idea on who was speaking to me. I hopped to my feet and spun around to face three men sitting in chairs that were so majestic I almost mistook them for thrones./p
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14.08px;""Who are you?"/p
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14.08px;"My voice was weary as I asked the question that I really didn't want to know that answer too. I wasn't sure if it was cold in the room or if it was just fear, but my body rocked with a rough shiver./p
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14.08px;"The three men chuckled. "I," the man in the middle throne said, "am Aro. These," he gestured to the two majestically dressed men beside him, "are Caius and Marcus." I faintly recognized the men, thinking back on my life I remembered seeing the perfect faces on the wall in Carlisle's office./p
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14.08px;""You are the…Volturi?" I asked in a small voice./p
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14.08px;"The last man, Marcus, answered, "Yes. You recognize us?"/p
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14.08px;""Yeah, I think I remember seeing a painting of you guys on the wall in Carlisle's house…" The words came out unsure, almost a question./p
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14.08px;""Oh! Old Carlisle! I haven't seen him in ages!" Aro exclaimed. "Will you mention to him I said hello?"/p
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14.08px;"Caius tapped Aro's arm lightly, whispering words I wouldn't have heard as a human. "Aro, you know that you shouldn't give her a false sense of security. By the mood Edward was in this morning I can almost say for sure that she won't ever make it back to her humble home."/p
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14.08px;""We mustn't be so sure Caius, maybe he will take pity on the girl he once loved."/p
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14.08px;""But you must remember why he even joined us! For revenge upon her and her new love…"/p
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14.08px;""We shall see."/p
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14.08px;"Aro stood, his robes flowing, sending a fresh, strong scent of vampire over to my side of the room./p
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14.08px;"The scent hit me like a blow to the gut. My eyes widened and I gasped, trying not to breathe. My hands began to tremble with the urge to faze and protect myself. I remembered, however, what Edward and Alice had said against the Volturi. They were too dangerous. I had to keep my cool./p
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14.08px;""I would not suggest doing that here," Marcus announced./p
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14.08px;""Oh yes!" Aro cried out, "I was quite surprised when Edward mentioned that the werewolves had returned to us. I thought that they had been wiped out but…apparently not. I would much enjoy seeing one again…but us two being mortal enemies that would probably not be a smart idea."/p
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14.08px;"I tried to suppress a tremor that ran through my spine but I was sure that they noticed. Caius was beginning to look uncomfortable./p
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14.08px;""So," I whispered, pulling a strand of hair out of my face, "where is he?"/p
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14.08px;""He?" Aro murmured, "Ah! You must mean Edward. He right outside those doors."/p
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14.08px;"My eyes bulged. How long had he been standing there? I rotated my head over my shoulder to look at two, grand gold doors./p
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14.08px;""Please come in Edward."/p
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14.08px;"I froze. After more than three months, I was seeing Edward again. Edward./p
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14.08px;"The doors opened slowly and gracefully, Edward strolled into the room./p
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14.08px;"I had almost forgotten how beautiful he was, but he looked different. His face was hardened, his expression no longer gentle and his eyes…they were just as red as the others./p
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14.08px;"He sauntered past me to a throne that was in the middle and much higher than Aro, Marcus and Caius's./p
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14.08px;""Isabella Marie Swan." I shivered at the use of my full name, "It has been much too long for my liking."/p
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14.08px;"I took one step back. "What do you want with me?" I whispered./p
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14.08px;""I want my revenge." He growled, "I want you to experience the same pain I did. I will not kill you…yet. First, you must suffer."/p
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14.08px;"This was not the Edward I remembered. He was not mellow or compassionate. The hate that was emerging from him was fierce, overpowering, uncontrollable…/p
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14.08px;""Bring him in." he called to someone outside the golden doors./p
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14.08px;"There were three people, the two on the sides had a hold on the one in the middle's arms, dragging him into the room. Once they were out of the hallway I recognized them all immediately. Alec and Jane stepped into the room hauling Jacob./p
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14.08px;"His eyes were closed, still unconscious I assumed, his arms were chained behind his back and his ankles and knees were also bound. The two vampires pulled him right between Marcus, Caius, Aro and myself./p
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14.08px;""Shall we wake him now?" Marcus asked, seeming uninterested./p
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14.08px;""Yes." Edward rumbled mercilessly./p
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14.08px;""How?" Caius insisted, seeming much more engrossed than Marcus./p
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14.08px;"Edward thought for a moment, then said, "Let Jane do it."/p
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14.08px;"I couldn't contain my gasp of terror. Edward's gaze shifted from Jacob to me. He looked at me expectantly, as if he were waiting for me to say something./p
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14.08px;""Please!" I begged, speaking quickly and urgently. "Please don't hurt him! Hurt me instead!"/p
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14.08px;"Aro raised his eyebrows questioningly at Edward as if to say, emwill you?/em Edward shook his head 'no', a sickly smile curving up onto his face. "I told you," he spoke to Aro but intended me to hear it, "I want her to suffer what I suffered."/p
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14.08px;""Don't worry, Isabella." Edward directed his words at me now, "we emwill /emhurt you, but we want you to watch us hurt emJacob /emfirst." He promised./p
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14.08px;""Jane, please continue," Edward demanded./p
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14.08px;""Yes, master." She giggled, focusing her gaze on Jacob. It was silent for one, torturous second then Jacob's eyes opened. He just groaned at first, then his mouth opened wider, a flurry of yells. I saw Jane's eyes narrow and Jacob's yells grew louder./p
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14.08px;""STOP IT!" I screamed shaking my head and running to Jacob, collapsing beside him. I threw my arms around him screaming, "PLEASE!"/p
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14.08px;"Jane seemed to concentrate even harder and Jacob screamed, his chained arms and legs flailing and his back arching./p
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14.08px;""Jane!" Aro commanded, "The boy is awake." Jake went still, gasping for breath as Jane's gaze went elsewhere./p
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14.08px;""Alec," Edward nodded to him, "would you please have Isabella stand back?"/p
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14.08px;"Alec nodded in return, running over to me and ripping me away from Jacob, pushing me away and holding my shoulder with an iron tight grip. Edward began to descend from his perch./p
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14.08px;"He strolled over Jacob, grabbing him by the hair and hoisting him up to his eye level, Jacob took a sharp breath in, his arms beginning to shake. "It's no use, Jacob, if you faze then we'll just kill you faster."/p
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14.08px;"Jacob's arms slowly became still. Suddenly, Edward dropped him to the ground and straightened his robes, there was one quick streak and he was back on his throne. Then, one of the golden doors opened and a young, human girl poked her head into the room./p
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14.08px;""Sorry to interrupt, but there is a tourist group ready to see you."/p
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14.08px;""Thank you, Gianna," Edward spoke, "send them in." he waved his hand aside./p
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14.08px;""Jane, Alec," he addressed, "Take them to their cells."/p
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14.08px;"Alec moved his grip on my shoulder to my arm as he led me out of the room and past a group of humans. He put his freezing hand over my eyes./p
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14.08px;""I do not want you to see where anything is in case you decide you wish to escape." He murmured in my ear, then he roughly lifted me into his arms, I felt a rush of wind against my face and we stopped. He lifted his hand away./p
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14.08px;""Here you are, wolf, we'll feed you later. Don't worry, your boyfriend is right behind us."/p
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14.08px;"Sure enough, Jane hauled Jake into the room seconds later and, surprisingly, threw us into the same prison cell. Alec chained together my arms and then my ankles and legs. Shutting the door, he whispered,/p
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14.08px;""Goodnight."/p