Annabelle's POV

The grand doors to the Volturi's inner chambers opened. Without giving me any time to prepare myself, my guard roughly pushed me in, forcing me along until I was in the middle of the circular chamber, standing before a risen platform upon which sat three black marble thrones, engraved with gold lettering of ancient philosophies.

"Ah. The self-selected fugitive." Aro's whispering, feathery voice floated down from his high chair atop the stone steps. As always, he sat between his brothers, Marcus and Caius. "As promised."

As promised? What does that mean? I wondered.

"We hope that our mercy in letting you escape with that rogue has led you to understand more about the truths of being a vampire," Aro continued, as my guard finally let go of me. He moved back and stood besides the door to keep watch.

"Yes," I said to Aro, as firmly as I could. "I have learned more since I was last here."

"Oh?" Aro voiced aloud his response hopefully. "So, you have come to join us?"

"No. I've come to free Carlisle," I announced.

Aro blinked. Then, he laughed. Marcus did not seem amused, but Caius' mouth twisted into a grim smirk.

"And what makes you so sure he would want to be freed by you?" Marcus spoke aloud. His voice rustled like the old pages of an ancient, heavy book.

I replied honestly, "Whether he wants to be freed by me or someone else is irrelevant. I'll free him first, of my own will. He can decide to live without me after that. I still won't regret my decision to free him."

"You wouldn't be 'freeing' him, you ignorant girl," Caius snapped at me. "Carlisle Cullen came to us of his own free will."

"But he did it to protect everyone else," I said quietly. "Carlisle doesn't have to say that aloud for me to know the way his mind works. I know what kind of person he is. And just as he saved us, I will also do my part and save him."

"How touching," Aro murmured, staring at me.

Besides him, Caius snorted.

"I almost… envy Carlisle," Aro said, and his voice dropped in a low, almost slithering tone. "He inspires such… loyalty in his followers."

"Not followers," I corrected. "Family."

"Yes, but not you," Caius said, and his sharp voice cut through the air like a knife – straight to my heart. "You're the thing that he abandoned, an outcast. So, why do you think that you're fit to be here? You're wasting everyone's time. Surely, you must see this."

I kept my expression as neutral as possible, despite how deeply Caius' brutal words lodged themselves into my heart, playing directly into my insecurities.

"Brother," Aro reprimanded Caius softly, "don't use such harsh words for our sensitive little guest."

"Though," Aro continued, turning his gaze back on me, "it is true that you were always an orphan. I remember your thoughts, Annabelle. The girl who spent her life behind windows, was it? Oh yes, and being a vampire doesn't change your nature, it intensifies it. As unwanted as you may have been as a human, you are only that much more undesirable now. I'm sure you've felt that since you turned…"

In a lilting and entrancing voice, Aro spoke to me. "Meeting the Cullens, could you truly say that there was a place for you? You must have seen how Carlisle already has his family. He has for many years now. They are his everything. He would never want you now, would he? Your adoration for him is decidedly one-sided, my young, sweet vampire."

"I..." I hesitated.

Seeing my confidence beginning to waver, Aro allowed himself a small smile. "Tsk, tsk," he said in a pitying voice. "I'll tell you what, Annabelle, my sweet. Join us, and you will never want for a home again. I'm sure we can find a place for your gifts here. As I remember it, you have the most fascinating ability to dream."

I did not respond to Aro's invitation. I had no intention of joining the Volturi, but I also did not wish to insult them, not when my only goal here was to free Carlisle.

At my silence, Aro stood up from his seat and walked slowly down the steps. Reaching the floor of the chamber, he came towards me. When I stepped back from him, he laughed lightly and remarked, "Oh, come now. Don't be afraid. Join us, I say."

I still did not move.

"Such hesitation. Why?" Aro wondered aloud. "What could explain your reluctance to be one of us?"

Aro suddenly reached out and touched my cheek. I gasped as I felt him speeding through all of my thoughts since I'd last seen him.

Aro seemed highly amused by the events he saw, and he seemed particularly pleased with my memories of last night. In an especially joyful voice, he told me, "See, Annabelle, you would fit right in with us here. In fact, you can have your pick between my fair brother, Marcus, who delights in interesting playthings like dreams, or… to accommodate his special request, you could spend the rest of yours days here in Volterra with our dear friend Levine."

My eyes flashed up to Aro's. What did he just say? Spend the rest of my days here in Volterra... with Levine? My lips slowly fell open as shock told hold f my mind.

Aro grinned at me, having clearly achieved the effect he wanted from me.

"What?" I breathed out. "Levine isn't one of you!"

All three of them laughed - a beautiful, if not cruel, symphony of pitched humor rang out in the marble chamber, echoing ever so slightly.

"Oh, but of course he is. Of course he is," Aro said pleasantly, as though he was giving me a piece of news that would delight me.

Aro looked down at me and shook his head in mock sympathy. "You still don't understand how broad our reach is, do you? Well, but you can't help that. You're still practically a newborn, in large part because your creator had absolutely no interest in educating you whatsoever. But we can teach you… not just the basics, but everything you want to do. Everything…"

Aro opened his arms before me and said matter-of-factly, "I see that you have a voracious appetite for learning. We encourage that here. We consider ourselves the keepers of the nighttime realm. That includes the arts, philosophy, and above all – the law."

"I don't care what you can offer me," I told him bluntly, becoming quite impatient. "It's all manipulation."

"Manipulation?" Aro repeated, looking very offended. "My, my. I seem to have touched quite a nerve when I revealed to you that Levine was one of us. But why should that anger you so? It's merely an indicator that you, too, would fit right in with us. Truly, child, I do not understand your resistance to taking advantage of all that we offer you..."

"Because it's false," I retorted, dropping all pretense now. "Even now, you're twisting my memories of my friends! I know for a fact that you've spread lies about the Cullen family. They have no Immortal Child. They never did! Carlisle and Esme never sought to create an Immortal Child, and Edward and Bella's child is half-human! She's grown-up now, and she has learned quicker than most of our kind to keep the secret of our race."

Aro's face had turned quite sour at my words, but I continued, speaking furiously, "And Levine was never one of you! Never. He's my friend, and my ally. He would never have helped me if he were under your command."

Aro was staring at me with a most displeased expression on his face. It frightened me, for I had never seen Aro drop his display of airiness and grandeur.

However, in contrast, both Caius and Marcus, who was still sitting on their thrones, seemed mildly pleased with me for the first time. Caius, in an extremely amused voice, declared, "She doubts us, brother. Perhaps we should show her the two men she so seems to favor – show them for what they really are." He turned to two small hooded figures - Jane and Alec, who had been standing in the shadows of the marble pillars and watching everything. Caius instructed them in a clipped voice, "Bring in Carlisle and Levine. At once."

"Yes, master," they chorused, and the two figures walked away together.

Calm down, calm down, I told myself. Don't be tricked. Don't jump to conclusions. Just because they're being brought here doesn't mean anything. Levine warned me that we'd be separated once we got inside Volterra. Of course he'd be here. And Carlisle – at least he's alive, thank God.

"Shall I tell you a little about Levine while we wait for him?" Aro asked me, still staring down at me. "Because, you see, he's an interesting fellow all on his own, with no embellishments needed."

"And you, Annabelle, have made him even more interesting to us," Aro told me. "Levine has never asked us for anything in his long and miserable life. Yet, when he turned you in to us, he requested that if you chose to join us here, then we hand him back to you, unharmed."

"Though, I see that he didn't quite wait for you to join us. It seems that he's jumped the gun and marked you already," Aro said, and his eyes flickered down to my neck. I frowned and instinctively reached up to touch my neck. My fingers landed on a tiny charm, strung on a thin silver line so weightless that I hadn't noticed it at all. I looked down at the charm to see the symbol of a moon and sun tangled together.

Aro suddenly ran his finger under the line and then tugged it. The necklace did not give. Instead, I jolted forward and Aro caught me.

"As I thought. He's welded the moon metal onto you so that only you can take it off the first time," Aro murmured. "A craftsman through and through. His abilities have exceeded even my expectations..."

I didn't understand what was happening. But I did remember Levine's hands slipping all the way around my neck as he kissed me. When he was grasping my neck, he must have somehow put this necklace on me. Why would he do that? I wondered. I know sun metal is dangerous, but what does moon metal do? I imagine vampires share positive energy with the moon, seeing as we are technically nocturnal creatures. Did Levine mean to protect me?

Aro, whose hands were on my shoulders from having caught me, smiled as he read my thoughts. "Yes…" he said thoughtfully, musing along with me. "Perhaps Levine does mean to protect you, after all."

Aro suddenly laughed, startling me. "An interesting thought, isn't it? In fact, I might call it irony at its finest," Aro said, still chuckling. "Because you see, Levine's original ploy was to bring you back to me as a bargaining chip. He's clever, that boy. He knew that he would be able to use you as bait, even though we never specifically said that we needed you. But Levine immediately figured out that we would appreciate having you here, especially once Carlisle made the decision to come to us of his own free will. Having you here will give us a great advantage in controlling Carlisle, you know. Though, he won't care for you as much as he would a member of his true family, nonetheless, if I know anything about Carlisle, it's that he feels a sense of responsibility. He's your creator, after all. He wouldn't let you die so easily, would he?"

I blinked. Let me die...? What are the Volturi planning to do to Carlisle?

"Don't you wonder," Aro asked me, eyeing me, "how far Carlisle Cullen would go to save you?"

Before I could reply (not that I wanted to), Aro suddenly switched back to speaking about Levine. "Anyhow, when Levine initially contacted us, the deal was that if he brought you to us, in return, he would be free to go wherever he liked, as long as continued to provide his services to us, of course. We, the Volturi, were prepared to accept such a deal, even if it put us at a most regrettable disadvantage. Because we cherish Levine's gifts. There is little we would not do to keep him with us. So, we were prepared to make that sacrifice on his behalf. However, when Levine approached us last night, when you were out hunting, he seemed to have changed his tune. Amazingly, he no longer wanted to go free. Instead, he asked to stay here, as long as you would freely volunteer to be his apprentice - "

"Apprentice?" I asked, cutting Aro off, as my confusion was mounting. My brow furrowed as I tried to make sense of what Aro was telling me.

"Oh, yes. Levine builds the jail cells here," Aro told me. "He's a master craftsman of metals that other vampires simply can't handle. The necklace you're wearing is evidence of that."

My mind went blank.

"And that's not all," Aro went on. "We – ah, encouraged him to expose his body to sun metals for a… well, a long time. He has now developed the power of decay within himself. Levine, with one touch, can simply… evaporate his enemies. And even if he doesn't kill them, the damage he inflicts is irreversible."

That's right, I realized. I saw him. When that male vampire attacked us on the beach, he disintegrated his body to dust with just one touch. Levine didn't even need fire.

Numbly, I asked, "How...?"

"Levine carries the power of the sun within his very flesh," Aro explained. "But at no low cost. You see, his power eats away at him with every passing moment. He may be the only vampire to die in time."

Through the sudden numbness in my brain, I remembered what Levine had said to me during our journey here. He had said, "That's because you don't know the cost of making such objects. I'm a vampire like you. Do you think I'm immune to the pains of crafting metals from highly repellant material?"

This is what he meant, I began to realize. Levine's ability to work with dangerous metals, and his ability to cause decay in other vampires' bodies, it costs him his very life force... Because he holds the power of the sun within him, but no vampire can withstand the sun for long. Oh, Levine... What a terrible power you have.

"It's simply amazing," Aro said, speaking as though Levine was merely an interesting science experiment who happened to be a person, rather than a person whose entire life was decaying in order to produce a highly destructive power. "Though undeniably tragic in some ways, I must say, the three of us take great pride in having found and created such a vampire."

The three of them found him? Created him? A dark, hollow feeling began to swirl in my stomach. Levine... Who are you, really? What are your powers? And did you betray me, did you fool me all this time, for your own benefit?

"I see that you are starting to believe," Caius noticed, speaking in a formal, clipped voice.

"Makes no difference," Marcus muttered tiredly. "She'll see for herself in just a moment."

As if on cue, the doors opened. The twins, Jane and Alec, had returned, with each guiding someone. There was also a third Volturi member walking alongside the twins. She was a smaller female with light brown hair.

"Ah, Chelsea, you saw fit to come, did you?" Aro greeted her.

She simply murmured, "Levine will need me…"

"Yes. You are clever, aren't you? You always know where you are most needed," Aro praised her.

"Renata is also nearby, Master," Chelsea replied.

"Hardly necessary, but I appreciate it," Aro responded. He gently placed his hand on Chelsea's shoulder for a brief moment.

As Aro and Chelsea spoke, Jane led Levine in, and Alec dragged Carlisle in.

Upon seeing him, I cried out, "Carlisle!"

Carlisle looked exhausted. I couldn't tell what exactly he had been subjected to, but he looked in worse shape than I'd ever seen him.

Hearing my voice, Carlisle's head shot up. He looked over at me in complete surprise. "Annabelle! What are you doing here? You must leave -"

Jane cut him off with a sharp dig into his side, her elbow making contact with his ribs. Carlisle grimaced and he fell silent.

Stepping away from Chelsea, Aro returned to me. He grasped my arm tightly in his hand. The strength of his fingers surprised me. "You see?" Aro whispered in my ear. "Carlisle doesn't want you here. He didn't even expect you to come."

"Aro," Carlisle said quietly, seeing how tightly Aro was gripping my arm. "Let Annabelle go. She's done nothing wrong."

"Ignorance is a sin, Carlisle," Caius replied sharply. "You've kept the poor girl in the dark. She followed you here to save you. She doesn't even realize that you came here of your own accord."

Carlisle's eyes dimmed at Caius' words.

"Carlisle..." I called out again. I reached out to him, though I wasn't anywhere near him, and Aro's grasp on me was keeping me by Aro's side.

However, noticing my desire to be closer to Carlisle, Aro eagerly pulled me forward, bringing me up to Carlisle until that we were mere feet apart.

I gazed at Carlisle worriedly, trying my best to see if he was hurt anywhere. Is he hurt anywhere? I wish I could touch him, heal him, make sure he's all right…

Aro looked down at me in surprise. "Oh, your feelings for him are quite strong, aren't they?" he said, still able to read my thoughts through his grip on my arm. "I thought you were simply attached to him because he was your creator, because he could give you some strange promise of home, but it's more than that, isn't it? You meant it when you said you wouldn't regret it even if he didn't choose you…"

Carlisle looked up at Aro, unsure of what he meant.

"In fact…" Aro reached over and lifted my face so that I had to look at him, "would I be right in saying that you love him?"

I blinked.

Aro smiled victoriously. "But look!" he said, and keeping my chin in his grasp, Aro turned my head and forced me to look at Carlisle.

Carlisle was looking at me with a confused and surprised expression, as though I were some stranger to him, someone he didn't understand or want to see again, let alone claim to have created, let alone love…

My heart shattered. I twisted fiercely in Aro's grasp, suddenly wanting him to let go of me, wanting to flee from this place, or at least to hide my face from Carlisle. No, no, no... I can't take this right now. Is this how Carlisle finds out about my feelings for him? I can't allow this! The way he's looking at me now, almost in disgust. I knew he would, once he found out about my feelings for him. It's why I never told him. It's why I never confessed.

"Yes, I see, that's why you never told him," Aro marveled at me, reading through my thoughts in pure fascination and glee. "You forced yourself to love him with no expectation, all this time. Oh, it almost breaks my heart, Annabelle…"

"Get on with it, Aro," Marcus ordered, having had quite enough of his brother's theatrics.

"Or at least change the play," Caius said. He seemed quite amused in anticipating what was to come.

"Ah, yes, shall we introduce our long-time friend, lovely Levine, into this skit?" Aro asked. A slow and knowing smile spread over Aro's face as he mentioned Levine. "We were just chatting about you, Levine. Your friend here was determined to convince us that you were not one of us, that you were only her friend, hers alone and with no connection to us. It was all rather pathetic, if not a bit touching, when the truth is that you, Levine, have been a key member of our coven for many, many years now."

"Look at him again, my sweet," Aro purred in my ear. "Look at your friend, Levine, and witness his success. For he has succeeded - he followed through on his deal, you see, and brought you here, to us, where you are most wanted."

"Look." Aro turned my head forcefully once again - this time, towards Levine.

I tried to ignore the terror in my heart as I was forced to look at Levine.

Levine was dressed in different garb entirely now. On his chest lay the Volturi insignia.

I slowly breathed out.

Seeing where my gaze was, Levine looked back at me with tormented eyes. When our eyes met, a jolt of disbelief, pity, and repulsion rose up all at once within me. I quickly shut my eyes. He was playing with me the whole time. He used me. He used me for his own freedom. No wonder he already knew so much about my situation, and Carlisle. His whole purpose was to capture me. And I walked right into his trap. I foolishly believed all of the lies he fed me. I trusted him. I thought he would understand... because we were both orphans. I thought he felt the bond between us. But, as ever, it was me. Only me. It's always just me, isn't it? Aro's right. If I thought I was alone as a human, that feeling has only amplified since I became a vampire.

"Oh, my lovely, I'm sure you are distressed to find that your guide, your companion, wears many masks all at once," Aro told me sympathetically, "but you mustn't turn away. You must keep your eyes open to watch the play."

I shook my head, keeping my eyes shut. "No," I murmured. "I don't want to see - to see anymore..."

Fed up with my disobedience, Caius snapped, "Jane."

"No!" Carlisle shouted, but it was too late.

I screamed as an unknown, supernatural force abruptly pummeled into me. I writhed all over as jolts of pain shot through my entire body, like a thousand knives cutting and searing my flesh all at once. My scream rang out long and high.

"Jane!" Carlisle growled. He attempted to leap forward to stop her, but Alec grasped him roughly from behind.

"Try anything, and I'll take away your mind," Alec promised Carlisle threateningly.

Jane grinned.

"Enough," Marcus whispered.

The pain stopped all at once. My legs gave out, but Aro caught me again.

"As I said," Aro continued, as though that hadn't just happened, "keep your eyes open."

I blearily opened my eyes.

Levine was staring down at the ground between us.

"Traitor," I managed to bleat out at him. "I trusted you..."

Aro tsked loudly, but it was clear that he was enjoying himself. He wasn't the only one, either.

"You did well, Levine," Caius commented lightly from behind us. "I normally don't appreciate Aro's antics, but this is a truly perfect set-up."

At Caiu's words, Levine suddenly looked up. His expression was stiff and formal. His jaw was taut, and his brow was furrowed. But nothing about his demeanor signaled familiarity when his gaze fell on me. He gave no indication that he knew me whatsoever. However, his eyes… his eyes told a different story. They were burning, flashing darkly and yet brightly between a fiery orange and a deep, blood-like crimson… I know those eyes, I thought, and he can't completely hide the fact that he knows me, either. True, we were only traveling companions, and for a very short time, at that. Still, for us orphans of the world, for those of us who have been deprived of any long-standing and meaningful connections, a simple friend can mean everything.

"I'm glad we found a situation that is agreeable to the both of us, brother," Aro returned. "Now, if only Marcus could also be entertained…"

Marcus just shook his head. "Aro…" He sighed impatiently.

"Very well."

Before Aro could continue speaking, Carlisle tried to negotiate. He said, "Aro, please, let Annabelle go. You already know that she has nothing to do with this. I will stay here for as long as you wish. You don't need to keep Annabelle here to convince me. Besides, she's not tied to anyone here. So, please, let her be free of us. Her presence is irrelevant here."

"Of course she's relevant, Carlisle," Marcus spoke out in a weary, knowing tone. "You cannot fool me. I know the lengths you went to to protect her, to keep her in the dark, Carlisle. But I must ask you: Why did you even try? You already knew what my power is. I see relationships. This young one here – you created her. A bond of creation - of vampiric life - can hardly be called irrelevant."

"Yes, Annabelles's presence is certainly relevant," Aro affirmed. "And quite apart from you, Carlisle, she has her own dues to pay, for she's a fugitive under the law. Aren't you, my child?"

"I'm not," I protested, glaring up at Aro. "Neither Alistair nor I committed any crime."

"Then, whatever she did, as her creator, I will take responsibility for her," Carlisle said firmly. "Let her go, Aro." A touch of impatience entered his voice as he continued to plead for my release.

"It's not up to you," Caius replied cuttingly. He suddenly stood up from his throne.

At Caius' authoritative movement, Carlisle stiffened. Behind him, Jane smiled. Though her loyalty was first and foremost to Aro, she preferred Caius' quick, no-nonsense manner of dealing with situations like this.

"You should have thought about the danger you would put her in before you created her," Caius told Carlisle, as he grandly came down from his throne. "But in your mad desire for power, you've forgotten the truths of law. Let me remind you of the old Roman truth: With power comes liability. She is your liability now, and not because you can take responsibility for her, but simply because she is your weakness."

"I am not his liability," I snarled furiously. "I am not his weakness."

"Shut up," Levine hissed at me suddenly. "He'll kill you."

Carlisle stared with sorrowful eyes at Caius. "My brother, what have you become?" he whispered. "I never wanted power. I have never sought it. You know this. So why do you continue to feel threatened by me?"

Caius slapped him sharply across the face. "Don't lie!" he hissed. "Why else would you have created her?"

I flinched hard when Carlisle was hit, almost as though I, too, had been hit. Carlisle had noticed me flinch in his peripheral vision when he himself was hit, and, drawn instinctively to movement, he inadvertently looked over at me.

Carlisle's eyes met mine. I swallowed hard as we stared at each other. A crack had appeared on his cheek.

"Carlisle," I breathed out. His golden eyes were weary and filled with a deep regret for the way that things had turned out.

In that moment of our gazing at each other, Carlisle realized how frightened I was, and I recognized how sad he was. It was the same relationship from when he had watched me die in the hospital bed.

Slowly, Carlisle confessed, in reply to Caius' question, "You ask why I saved Annabelle. It was because I wanted her to live her dreams. She has the most beautiful dreams. If she could live her life in the same vein, her life could be as wondrous and bright as her mind. And since I've created her, I haven't been able to bear the thought of a world without her in it - Annabelle, finally living in accordance with her dreams. I never expected her to become tangled up in my own complications. I never expected her to stay with me in any capacity beyond basic mentoring, because I have nothing to offer her except what I already gave her: a chance at a second, albeit a pale imitation of, life. I've given her that, and I've nothing more to offer her. We have no relationship beyond her creation."

My heart sank. Even in such a dire situation, Carlisle's words still managed to sink me.

"Marcus?" Caius barked out sharply, turning to his brother.

Marcus, who was still sitting in his throne, crossed his hands over his lap and sighed. "Carlisle," he warned, "that's not all, and you know it."

Not all? I thought, puzzled. What does Marcus mean by that?

"Carlisle?" Aro prompted him. "Tell us. Is there more?"

Carlisle hesitated. "I don't know what you mean, Marcus."

"Don't you?" Marcus said dryly. "The amorphous nature of your relationship - shapeless, but strong. I see it, caught like a cloud in the wind. You don't know what to make of it, but it's there, Carlisle. You cannot deny it."

Carlisle seemed to consider Marcus' words deeply before he finally admitted, "Well, yes. I confess that... my own life doesn't make much sense anymore without also knowing that Annabelle is living somewhere in the world, even if she's not with me."

Without realizing it, I held my breath. For one long moment, the entire chamber filled with complete silence, the kind of silence the echoed in its own emptiness. In the silence, I shivered slightly, as indecipherable waves of emotions washed over me, one after the other, as my heart figuratively thumped at Carlisle's words.

Then, Aro's face suddenly broke into a luminous smile as he accurately realized the possibilities of the situation before him now. "Perfect," he said happily. Addressing everyone, he asked grandly, "Then, shall we proceed?"