Chapter 25 - Into the belly of the Beast... such fun

We were seated in the living room of the small cottage Alice had somehow managed to rent and everyone's eyes were on me.

I had watched carefully as we entered Volterra and had seen the signs all over that a new hunt was close. Tourists were flooding the streets, pamflets advertising the mysterious and magnificent Volterra castle were all over the square and I was sure I'd seen a glimpse of Heidi, scoping out the town for the best smelling humans for Aro.

'Tomorrow there will be a hunt.' I said. 'It will mean all the vampires and most of the guard will be in the great hall.' I pointed to the corresponding area on the crude map I'd drawn for them.

'So we won't invade then.' Emmett said.

'No, we will.' I countered. 'It's the one time when there is minimal activity outside of the Great hall. Edward is probably being kept in the dungeons. They are pretty much the furthest away from the great hall. It's the best time to launch an attack.'

'Surely, they won't relieve the centuries from their posts? They won't have everyone feeding at once?' Jasper asked slightly incredulous.

'No, the centuries are still there, but the entire gifted guard always eats together with Aro, Marcus and Caius.'

'So just regular vampires are guarding?' Emmett asked a slight twinkle in his eye as his fists clenched in anticipation. I rolled my eyes.

'They're still well over a few centuries old and not to be taken lightly.' I said sternly. Rosalie smacked his head and told him to be quiet and listen.

'So how to we get in then?' Carlisle asked.

'There's a blind spot over here.' I pointed to the east tower. 'We can climb up along the vines and go over the roof, we'll land in the courtyard which will then and only then be empty.'

Jasper nodded thoughtfully.

'There's a hallway through here which leads to the lower levels. It should also be clear. Further than that… I don't know. If Edward's down there I would guess they're keeping him incapacitated in some way… so it would mean minimal guards. But I don't know who or how many.'

'Alec would seem like an obvious choice to keep him incapacitated.' Jasper mused. 'and Felix as a guard.'

I nodded in agreement. 'But they are Aro's personal guards. He doesn't like them far away from him'

'Who else?' Jasper asked.

'Perhaps Santiago, he's similar to Felix, but not Aro's favourite. Perhaps Renata… but I'm not sure her shield would work to keep Edward contained.'

Carlisle rubbed his chin absentmindedly, as did Jasper. I smiled at the sight. It truly seemed they were like a family, even taking over each other's mannerisms.

'Alright, so we go in all together.' Carlisle concluded. 'Then we can overpower any guard they have posted.'

'If Alec is there, can you shield us long enough to take him out?' Japer asked.

I shrugged. 'I can shield one person for two minutes. It's a small window and only for one person.'

'What if you shielded Alec?' Carlisle asked. 'would that nullify his ability?'

'I'm… not sure…'

'I think it can work.' Jasper mused.

'From what I've heard from Kate, I think so too.' Rosalie added.

'Alright, then if Alec is there, Bella will shield him, hopefully rendering him useless for two minutes. Emmett, Jasper and I will hold him and deal with any other guards, while Rosalie, Esme and Alice go in and get Edward.'

'We'll have to hope there aren't that many on him.' Rosalie sighed.

'If Alec is the one incapacitating him, they won't need any other guards on him. Perhaps one other to keep Alec company, but that's it.' I said.

'How long can Alec incapacitate someone?'

'I've never heard of him having a limit.' I admitted. 'He's one of the strongest weapons the Volturi have.'

'Well, shit.' Emmett remarked dryly.

'What time will the hunt be?' Carlisle asked.

'Usually they leave at 7.30. Then at eight o'clock they convene in the great hall to commit mass murder.' I explained.

A collective shudder travelled through the group.

'Alright then. We'll have to be in place by 7.30, then wait until eight before heading over to Edward's cell.' Jasper plotted.

I nodded in agreement. 'That seems like the best idea. If we get on the roof by 7.30, we'll be in their blind spot.'

'Can we get there though with the guards still active?' Jasper asked.

I nodded again. 'I know where to go.'

He nodded and then we all turned to Alice.

She concentrated for a moment before her eyes went unfocussed and she stared off in the distance.
'I think it will work.' She hedged. 'We will make it onto the roof without trouble.' She stated firmly. 'But I can't see exactly what will happen once we're inside. There are too many things still undecided on the Volturi's side.'

I nodded to myself. 'There's nothing more fickle than Aro.' I murmured.

We all decided to wait until it was time to leave on our own.

That meant the couples mostly paired off and spent some time together, after all this could be the last time they all saw each other. We were heading into the lion's den and there was no definite answer as to what was going to happen and if we were going to make it out alive.

I gave them their space as I mulled everything over that had happened in these few short days.

I knew Edward did not deserve whatever the Volturi was doing to him right now. I knew his family had tried to explain why he'd acted the way he had. I knew just before Tanya had been apprehended and exposed as a spy he had tried to apologize to me. But I also knew it wasn't enough. They claimed he'd loved me and that he knew he was my mate. I had thought so too, that draw I'd felt to him had been real and tangible, but his absolute mistreatment of me, made me doubt everything. I didn't deserve a love like that. I had endured enough and I dserved someone that would treat me right. So I couldn't believe them when they said he'd done it out of love.

But perhaps I did owe it to both of us to give him the opportunity to explain everything himself.

I paced around the gardens as I mused about everything. I knew if I helped him escape I would be on the Volturi's hitlist. They were probably already searching for me, but I was just a blip right now. If I helped Edward, the feared coven master, escape from their hold, I would become priority number one. I would need the Cullen coven's protection, but I wasn't sure if I was ready to put myself in that position again. I could try and live on my own, but my two experiences had showed me just how easily I could be found.

'All your pacing is giving me anxiety.' Jasper said as he walked into view.

I halted and glanced at him. 'Sorry.' I muttered.

he gave me a small smile. 'Want to talk about it?'

I frowned for a moment then sighed. 'How far away does your gift work?' I asked him.

he grinned at me. 'Far enough.' Then he sat down on a stone bench, patting the seat next to him. 'What has you this confused?'

'What hasn't got me confused?' I muttered.

'Are you confused about Edward?'

I nodded once. 'I know you all seem convinced he loves me, but you don't do something like that to someone you love.'

He put his elbows on his knees and nodded thoughtfully. 'Yes, he went about everything quite wrong.'

'Not to mention what you all hope to gain from this.' I continued.

'That too.' He agreed.

'I mean you just show up out of nowhere and I'm once again dragged into this power struggle, while all I want is a quiet and normal life.'

I sighed and put my hands in my hair.

'I never asked for any of this. Aro picked me and tore me away from my family. I didn't get a say into what I did until I left you guys.' I muttered. 'I need to be on my own and live my own life. but after this… after I help you… I know I won't be able to. The Volturi will hunt me down for doing this. Nowhere will be safe.' I heaved a sigh. 'Except for with you.'

'And then you'll still not be free.' Jasper surmised my fears and confusion. I nodded once. 'I understand. Perhaps more than you know. I was trapped once too. I was part of the newborn armies in the south of the states.'

My eyebrows shot up. The newborn armies had been a big problem for the Volturi and they had more than once needed to step in and destroy numerous vampires who were threatening to expose what we were to the humans.

'I was changed by one of the leaders of the south. She thought I had a gift, so she changed me because she thought she could use me.'

'Like Aro did with me.'

He nodded. 'She used my inexperience against me, made me believe she loved me. She had me convinced she loved me and that she was doing this for both of us.' He sighed and looked at his hands, tracing a few scars that dotted his skin. 'It took me about fifty years to break free from her. It wasn't until I saw what real love was that I realized it wasn't what she was offering me. But then I met Alice. And I realized right away that what she offered was something wonderful, something real and something to be treasured.'

'You're saying Edward is my Alice?'

He grinned at me. 'Alice is a unique force, I won't say anything is like her, but what I am saying is that perhaps you shouldn't write him off just yet. I know he hurt you, and he went about everything wrong... but if I know him – and I do – he's been using this time to beat himself up over how he treated you.'

I heaved a sigh. 'you're his brother. You're supposed to sing his praises, how can I trust you?'

He smiled sadly at me. 'I know you think our allegiance is to Eward and we care only for him. But Bella, during the short period of time you were with us, we grew to care about you too.'

I shook my head. 'I still find that hard to believe.'

'I know. And I won't try and convince you or try and talk you into doing something or opening up to Edward… I just want you to know… we care. We love you, even though you might see that differently. We just want you to be safe and happy too, and if that will be away from us… for a while at least, then we won't stand in your way.' He turned to me then and placed one hand on my shoulder. 'And we're all very grateful you were willing to help us bring Edward home.'

'He's not saved yet.' I grumbled.

'Still you're the only one who's been through this and yet you're facing it head on for someone who treated you badly, for a family you don't know how to feel about… You're an amazing person Bella. And I hope you will come back to us after all this, because having you as our coven mistress, it would make us damn near invincible and fill our coven with love and strength and… fun. You're what's been missing from our family Bella. Please just… keep that in mind.' He finished before giving me a small hug.

He stood up then and went back inside the cottage.

I remained on the bench, my head in my hands and my mind a whirlpool of conflicting thoughts. I stayed there mulling it all over until finally it was time to go.

I took a deep breath and called everyone together. We all wore similar looks of grim determination as we set off towards the castle of Volterra. Everyone filing behind me as I led them into the belly of the beast.