Chapter Forty Six
Caius
The drive hadn't been long but I couldn't help feeling tense so I wasn't able to enjoy it, something else that Darius had taken from me. To open the window and feel the sun on my face, the wind blowing against my cheek, it was a luxury and I intended to spend years travelling if, oh God please let it be so, that Darius was indeed dead.
The car pulled up outside the ruined villa sat perched atop the hillside with panoramic views all around. Behind, two other cars pulled up and my small cadre of bodyguards spread out watching for any sign of trouble. The good thing here was that unless Darius was already hiding inside, and there was no sign of that, he would be spotted if he tried to creep up on me.
The door creaked open and I stiffened although the woman who stood there regarding me was obviously no threat.
"Caius Volturi? She is waiting for you. Please follow me."
I nodded to my companion, the huge Santiago, to follow her inside and check the interior. Within seconds he was back, beckoning me inside.
"It's clear. There's only one large room and just the Oracle inside."
I nodded and gestured for him to wait outside then watched as he left the building before approaching the oracle who was sitting on a plain wooden chair in the center of the room and staring into a small fire burning at her feet.
"Welcome Caius Volturi. Approach, take a seat."
She waved a pale hand at a stool positioned opposite her chair and waited for me to obey before finally looking up at me.
I'd heard of her but never seen her in the flesh and it was quite a shock. No one knew exactly how old she was or what her name was. She had always been known simply as the Oracle. Her hair was white and her skin almost as pale as mine although she was not a vampire. I wasn't actually sure what she was, but not entirely human. Her eyes were deep-set and almost black, like fathomless pools and I felt myself being drawn into them.
"You have come to ask a question. Do you have the fee required?"
I pulled a leather pouch full of gold coins from my pocket and held them out but it was her companion, the human woman, who came forward to take it from me. She didn't open it, instead weighing it in her hand before nodding to her mistress.
"Very well. What is your question?"
"It's a very simple question. I just need to know if a certain vampire is still alive."
"Alive? No. None of your kind lives."
"I meant is this particular vampire still extant on our planet."
"And the name of this vampire?"
"Darius of Corinth."
She extended her hand across the flames and I stretched my own to lay it in hers, aware of the heat from the flames only a few inches below my vulnerable flesh.
Her other hand, colder than I had expected, threw something in the fire then closed over it, trapping mine between her two and closed her eyes.
The silence, broken only by the crackling of the small log fire seemed to stretch on into infinity while the scented smoke whirled around us and I felt myself floating. It was almost as if I were floating above our joined bodies and when she finally opened her eyes once more I was jolted violently back to reality.
I waited and eventually, she spoke.
"I count the grains of sand on the beach and measure the sea; I understand the speech of the dumb and hear the voiceless. Ahead I see emptiness, no shadow over your future."
As her hand moved away from mine I pulled mine back trying to work out what she meant. The Oracle never gave a simple yes or no answer, you had to work out what she really meant but in this case, it wasn't difficult. She had scanned the ether or whatever it was she did and had seen no sign of Darius on our world. I really was free at last.
"Thank you."
As I stood up, she turned her attention back to the fire and I noticed her eyes were closed once more.
Realizing I had been summarily dismissed I got up and walked rapidly to the door feeling the strange atmosphere suddenly oppressive inside the building.
As I reached it she spoke again, "I see all and much makes me weep. There is such evil that darkens the sun. May those with the purest hearts allow the sun to shine through."
I frowned, what the hell was that supposed to mean, evil? Pure hearts? I shook my head dismissing these words. I'd heard all I needed to. She was just giving me the dramatic exit she thought would impress me and make her seem mysterious and otherworldly.
As we drove back I was busy making plans for my first trip out of Italy in centuries. I knew what the world was like, I watched TV, I occasionally ventured into the town when I was sure that Darius was elsewhere and I surfed the net, but most of that was second hand. Now I would get to experience it all first hand. The cities, the technology, the women in their skimpy clothes and with their loose morals. I could taste my thirst for them and I knew I must be careful. The last thing I needed was Athena putting her foot down or causing a scene when I told her of my plans to leave Volterra alone.
I had a lot of making up to do. I wanted to see the world and I didn't want my wife hanging around my neck as I did so. Sighing, I took my phone out and called Felix who usually organized any travel itineraries for Aro or the members of the guard and asked him to arrange for some of the best travel brochures to be taken to my study.
"Do not let Athenadora see what you are doing, Felix."
"Of course. Did you have anywhere special in mind?"
I had so many but decided on a few that appealed most of all.
"Yes, Paris, Milan, Rome, Athens."
"So, a European tour?"
"Something like that. I will want a car and driver at each location."
I could drive, but I didn't want the hassle. I wanted nothing to trouble me as I soaked in the sights and smells of the world.
Aro
I was spending the evening with Sulpicia, something we did more often these days, now I had more free time, when Marcus knocked on the door apologizing for interrupting us.
"Come in, Marcus. I don't see you often enough and you are always most welcome."
My dear brother looked a little out of place in Suplicia's presence, awkward and a little nervous.
"Please, sit down."
He perched on the edge of the armchair she gestured to and glanced around, his eyes stopping for a moment on the portrait hanging on the wall opposite the French doors. I wondered if he remembered when it had been painted as vividly as I did. It showed myself, Sulpicia, Marcus, and Didyme just after we took over our world from the Romanians. We were triumphant, elated, and it showed on our faces.
I hated looking at it as it reminded me of my darkest deed, but I could hardly say anything to Sulpicia without her asking questions that I couldn't answer. Tearing his eyes away from it he returned his gaze to me, his eyes empty of any expression.
"I have a report from Felix."
I gestured for him to continue, "It's OK Marcus. You can talk freely before Sulpicia. I have no secrets from her."
He nodded before continuing.
"Caius has been to see the Oracle and is now making plans for a European tour."
Sulpicia sat forward her eyes sparkling excitedly, "So she did it. She managed to hide him from the Oracle. We must contact the Major and inform him that the plan is working."
Marcus nodded, "It would seem so. Would you like me to make contact or will you do it yourself?"
I would have loved to pass on the good news in person but to do so carried a risk. Caius may believe that Darius was dead but he might wonder why I was suddenly keeping such close contact with the Major, Darius' best friend. He was still suspicious about everything and everybody and I didn't want anything to go wrong with this.
"You make contact, it would be safer I think. I just want to know when the deed is done and before it becomes general knowledge. I want to begin the process of choosing someone to take his place."
"Very well. I should go. It was good to see you Sulpicia."
He stood and bowed gallantly to my wife before withdrawing.
"I wish it were possible to bring the smile back to poor Marcus' face. Are you sure it's fair keeping him here any longer? You don't need his gift now and he's suffered for so long despite Chelsea and Corin working their spell on him. His sadness is so deep."
I hated being reminded of this and the fact that I had caused it gnawed away at me. How proud Didyme would be if she could see all that I had achieved. She might even forgive me my deadly deed.
"Where would Marcus go, my dear? We're all he knows. In fact, I think he enjoys wallowing in his suffering."
Sulpicia tutted and slapped my arm, "Aro!"
I shrugged and retreated from dangerous ground.
Sulpicia
I was so pleased that Aro had been prepared to help Darius. It was something I had craved for so long, to be rid of the creature Caius. His very presence defiled the citadel. Of course, he wasn't the only one, there was another whose deeds made him loathsome and whose presence I had long ago shunned mentally.
It had been hard because I could hardly stop my own husband from touching me although sex had long ago lost its spark for us. We acted more like brother and sister these days. Love had turned to companionship and then, on my part at least, a dread, a horror of the man I married.
Aro had always been driven, ruthless, and loved power even more than he loved me. I had been merely something he wanted, a wife he could mould into the perfect companion and I had fallen for his persuasive charms.
Corin and Chelsea had become my almost constant companions if Athena was busy or with her accursed husband and we three had become close. They were the only two I could trust to keep anything from my husband as he never touched either of them. It was their pact with him. They would do his bidding provided they were left with their own private thoughts from that time onwards.
Maybe that's why they decided to tell what they had learned from a prisoner who was killed secretly in the catacombs beneath the citadel. Chelsea discovered the truth from her mate Afton who was down there quite by accident after picking up some long-forgotten crates stored down there.
He was taking a break before moving the crates back upstairs, probably reading one of his favourite romance books where no one could see or rag him about it.
He heard footsteps and then a voice he recognized, Aro's, talking to a prisoner. It was a prisoner he had heard rumors about, one who had caused problems in the past, fighting with he had mysteriously disappeared after an altercation during which he had made some strange comments about murder in high places. No one had known what he was talking about, but he had been in the guard since the beginning and was known for his sometimes fantastic stories about the war with the Romanians. So, no one had taken him seriously anyhow.
At first, I could hardly believe my ears. Afton told them that he had heard the prisoner was put to death in secret. They even checked the roll of executions and prisoners held in the catacombs and found nothing although Aro and Felix were both very strict about the paperwork being kept up to date.
Although my friends told me everything that Afton had heard only I understood the full ramifications of those words. They just knew I would be interested in such secret meetings and executions. Any gossip in the citadel was like water to a dehydrated man and snatched equally as greedily.
Chelsea was concerned about me when she saw how much her words had affected me. I was horrified because I knew exactly what he was referring to. How could I ever forget? I had walked in on a scene that had burned itself into my brain and even now if I closed my eyes I could conjure it up as if it had happened only yesterday.
Aro cradling Didyme's body in his arms and calling desperately for help. I had rushed to his side only to stagger back in horror when I understood that what he cradled was only a part of his sister. Her head was missing, a ragged wound cutting off her neck abruptly, a pool of venom soaking Aro's cloak and spreading ominously across the floor towards the roaring fire in the huge stone hearth.
When he could speak Aro had told us how he heard a scream and came running only to find Didyme lying on the floor, her head being devoured by the flames. He had seen no one, but the French doors lay open despite the heavy rain which was soaking the marble floor.
The guards were sent to scour the citadel looking for the assassin or assassins but no one was ever found, only a small postern gate unlocked and blowing in the wind. Whoever had murdered Didyme had escaped and despite years of searching, no one was ever brought to book for the horrible crime.
Now, the words that Afton had heard echoed inside my head making me feel sick to my stomach.
"I swear I never told anyone that I had left a postern gate open for you. I just spoke without thinking, but I never mentioned your name. I never said when or why Aro."
Could it be possible that Aro had either murdered her himself or arranged to have his own sister murdered? No, it was impossible, he loved Didyme and Marcus. They were our family, his own flesh and blood.
To my horror, it became apparent that he was indeed capable of such bloodshed. Aro had wanted rulership of our world, he wanted power and responsibility and he needed powerful gifts to enable him to get that. He needed Marcus, the one person who could see the connections between people, connections which could be manipulated to his own ends and Didyme and he wanted to leave the Volturi. They just wanted a simple life together away from politics and fighting and Aro could not allow that. I knew how much he had relied on Marcus for centuries as he took control and held onto it with a ruthless hunger that made him quite revolting.
Oh God! My husband was not only selfish and egotistical, but he was also guilty of murdering his own beloved sister. How had he lived with the guilt? How had he been able to look Marcus in the face, grieve over Didyme's grave and offer his support to his heartbroken brother-in-law, brother in arms?
No. I could not stand by and do nothing. To do so would make me no better than my husband. The monster whose hands were stained with the blood of his own sister. Megan's words sounded in my ears. She had asked me if you knew of a terrible wrong and had the power to put it right, shouldn't you do so? The question was, what should I do?