Chapter Seventeen

-Northern Italy-

Aro sprinted through the trees, crossing the countryside in a blur. He was hot on her trail but, given the amount of time that had passed, her scent was fading fast. Sunrise had come and gone, Lorna never returning. He had tried to give her the benefit of the doubt, at first. She hadn't been allowed to leave the Palazzo alone in quite some time. Perhaps she was simply enjoying herself and she'd be back by afternoon. Then afternoon came without her. As he sat and waited he remembered something. His now ex-wife Sulpicia mentioned they had encountered each other in the hall on her way in. Oh no.

He managed to catch her just as she was about to leave. She hadn't allowed him to look into her thoughts in years, but he insisted on it. It was of great importance he saw exactly what had transpired. Lorna held her to the wall, demanding a reason for her visit. The look that flashed across her face when Sulpicia told her he was still married...

Aro had left immediately.

Which, obviously, hadn't nearly been soon enough. At the speed she was capable of, he doubted she was still in the country anymore. Her trail grew ever fainter. Then he reached the Po River and it was gone completely. He stood among the brush at the river's edge, staring at the flowing water. She must have dived in to help erase her path. She knew he'd follow her. Lorna was going to be one step ahead of him the entire way. He pulled the nearest tree from the ground and hurled it into the murky river.


-Volterra, Italy-

Aro threw the doors to the throne room open. Of course both his brothers were present. Caius looked at him puzzled. It wasn't often Aro showed so much anger He briskly crossed the room, "Demetri, find Lorna. Take Felix with you."

He had turned to leave, hoping to avoid Caius' criticism. The blond called after him, "Your pet ran away, did she?"

Aro faced him, and he continued, "I told you; you should have put her down."

The darker haired man decided not to engage, retreating from the room. He took the elevator to his quarters, quickly closing the door behind him. Aro faced the empty room. And proceeded to destroy it in a fit of rage. No, not rage. Pain. When he finished, the man pressed his back against the wall and rubbed at the corners of his eyes. The only person he could be mad at was himself, really. If he hadn't allowed her out alone... He pushed her too far towards something she didn't want. Or so she said. He had been sure she was denying herself of her true feelings. That her dislike of him was a facade that she was unwilling to let go of without a push. He pushed, knowing he'd be there to catch her. But she had fallen the other way.

Aro had been confident in his approach. He had watched her closely, her facial expressions, the way she spoke, how fast her heart raced. Just the other morning he had gazed into her eyes while he made love to her, and had been convinced he had seen a glimmer of just that. Love. He had been certain she felt for him the way he did for her. The pull to her was so strong, he even thought that maybe she...

He sighed.


-Madrid, Spain-

We went over a bump and my face smacked against the window, jerking me awake. I snorted, "Where are we?"

I glanced around. The car was engulfed by tall, white buildings and bustling life. Moving my gaze to the driver of the vehicle, I then remembered he spoke absolutely no English. I racked my brain, "Eh, donde esta?"

That probably wasn't correct but the gentleman seemed to know what I was trying to say, "Madrid."

Perfect. Once the car was at a full stop I opened the door and stepped out, "Grazie."

Oops, that was Italian, not Spanish. The man smiled politely anyway before driving away. I stretched. On foot I had managed to make it about two-thirds of the way through France before I just got too fucking tired and had to hitch a ride. Probably wasn't a smart thing, and I would not have done it if I were entirely human. I hoped in the car with the first person that let me. Didn't care where they were going, as long as it was the opposite direction of Volterra.

Madrid was going to work in my favor in multiple ways. The city was huge with plenty of people out and about. That would make begging for money much easier. And because the city was so large, anyone following her scent would be wandering around for a while. Hopefully. There was also an airport and likely a sketchy place to "help" me with travel asshole had smuggled me over on a private jet so I lacked proper papers for air travel.

I spent the day moving through the streets, telling people I was homeless and broke and asked for help. Thankfully, the actual collecting money part didn't take long. Obtaining a forged passport took a bit longer. Once I found someone to do it, they had wanted more for it than what my flight was going to cost. But, with a bit of "persuasion", I managed to get it for the little extra I had left. The longer I stayed in Europe, the more likely I would be found and I'd be damned if I was going to let that happen.

At the airport, I was lucky and unlucky. They accepted my phony papers and allowed me to get a ticket to North Carolina. The down side was, the flight didn't leave until eight in the morning. That still left me with an uncomfortable amount of time to wait. To risk being caught up with. I left quite early in the day. Assuming Aro had been busy, as he said he would be, and hadn't noticed I left until the following morning, I'd have well over a twenty-four head start. But my departure time was still twelve hours from now. I tried not to think about it. I'd worry about it if I had to. In the meantime, I was going to find a quiet corner to huddle in and try to sleep.


-Southern France-

This was pointless, both Felix and Demetri knew it. The latter was able to trace her trail to the south of France but now it was dead, ending abruptly at a highway. Obviously she had gotten into a vehicle to travel. And now he wouldn't be able to track her any better than the man who sent him out. Which was quite frustrating to him. He was the best tracker in the world. Almost no one could hide from him. Except those whose minds were unavailable. Exceptionally strong mental shields could escape his notice. This girl, too, was lost on him because she was a Child of the Moon. Their minds were shut off from his kind. Which was why his master couldn't access her thoughts, no matter how hard he tried.

Demetri pulled a flip phone from his pocket and dialed. The receptionist answered after the second ring. "It's Demetri. I need Aro."

It was silent for a moment before the man picked up and demanded a progress report. Demetri braced himself, "Master, I managed to track her into Southern France but I've lost her scent."

Aro questioned Demetri's ability. "Her mind is blocked off from me, Master. I'm not able to hone in on it."

It was dead quiet. For a moment he wondered if Aro had walked away but then he spoke again, "I need her found, Demetri. Your tracking ability aside, I've tasked you with locating her. See that you do."

"Yes, Master Aro." He sighed after hanging up the phone. Felix rubbed his temples, "So, we're just supposed to scour the Earth, then?"

"No, we will be smart about this," Demetri tapped his chin as he thought, "Where would she most likely run to? Would she return home or remain in Europe?"

He was inclined to believe the first, but reconsidered. She was clever, according to Aro. It was possible she wanted them to think she went back to America, when really she would hide under their noses. Felix answered, "I don't think she's ever spoken of being homesick. There's nothing for her there."

"We're going to America then," Demetri pulled out the phone again, "She wants us to think she wouldn't go back, which means that's exactly what she did."

As his call rang through, he groaned internally. This was going to take awhile.