Chapter Twenty-Four
-Volterra, Italy-
"Curious creatures, the two of you are."
Stuart opened his eyes to find the source of the voice sitting in the corner across from him. His legs were crossed, hands folded in his lap, with a smirk on his face as he stared. Though he'd never seen him before, Stuart could guess who he was, "Here to finally kill me?"
His smile widened in amusement, "Of course not. You're much too useful at the moment."
The man's expression darkened slightly, "Merely curious what it is about you that my dear Lorna values so."
"Ah," Stuart nodded, "You're Aro, then."
He grinned again, "I am. I take it Lorna mentioned me?"
Stuart shrugged and watched the other man's demeanor flicker. The wolf decided to take a lesson from his Beta and have some fun, "Obviously she's talked about me. Did she tell you she used to want to sleep with me? Like, badly?"
He growled in satisfaction as Aro's features hardened, mouth pressed into a line. Obviously the vampire hadn't liked that. Had he struck a nerve? He continued, "We used to sneak out to the shed at this one place we stayed. She'd go down on me and then-"
"That's quite enough," Aro nearly snarled. Stuart snorted, "Unfortunately, that isn't actually true. But since you insisted on being nosy, I thought I'd make it worth the while. So what do you actually want, leech?"
Aro was in his face in a flash, lips pulled back slightly, "I want to know where Lorna is. If you value your life at all, you will tell me."
Stuart scoffed, "I risked my life leading your goons on a wild goose chase so she could run. I care about her enough to do that, you really think I'm going to hand her over to you now? Even if I did actually know where she went?"
The vampire stared a moment, then blinked, speaking more to himself than to Stuart, "You diverted my Guards to the South. She must have fled to the North, then."
He snapped his fingers twice, and a tiny female vampire appeared as if she had manifested from the shadows, "Yes, Master Aro?"
"Call Demetri," Aro ordered, not taking his eyes off Stuart, "Tell him and Felix to head into Canada, starting in the West."
She bowed slightly, "Yes, Master."
The woman disappeared as quickly as she had come. Aro continued to stare, an odd expression on his face, "I suppose I can see it."
"See what?"
"What it is Lorna sees in you that appeals to her so."
Stuart wrinkled his nose, "And that would be?"
Aro smiled and left the dungeon cell.
-Forks, Washington-
"Oh, must you go so soon? Please stay another night," Esme said sweetly. I hurriedly added, "Yes, please do!"
They all looked at me for a moment. To be honest, the words surprised me more than them. But the timing of this was too suspicious to me. The mind reading vampire takes his family to Seattle and suddenly Eleazar and Carmen have to return home? He smiled at Esme, "I do apologize, but there is some urgent business I must attend to."
Yeah, I'll bet there is. Ratting me the fuck out. Alright, just stay calm, Lorna. This guy is good buddies with Carlisle and the rest of the coven. Surely he wouldn't throw them under the bus? Of course not. I was just being silly and paranoid. So I mumbled, "Good riddance."
I turned to walk away, but not before seeing the apologetic look on Esme's face. A set of footsteps followed behind me. Once we were finally out of their earshot, Carlisle asked, sounding concerned, "Is everything alright, Lorna?"
I sighed, "Peachy. Just feeling a little stressed is all. Tell your friends that I'm sorry, will you?"
He nodded, "Of course. Is there something you need?"
"Nah," I tried to brush it off, "I'm gonna just try to grab some more sleep."
Yeah, I didn't sleep. Because when I tried, I had a nightmare. That Aro had shown up at the Cullen's front door, demanding he be allowed in to reclaim what was his. I had tried to hide, but he was smarter this time. He found me immediately, gripping my wrist and yanking me from under the bed. Using the momentum, he jerked me to him, crushing his lips to mine. A hand fisted in my hair as his tongue invaded my mouth, probing greedily. He tugged my head back and forced me to my knees in front of him. Slowly, a cruel smile crossed his face.
I pressed my lips together. Aro grabbed me by the jaw, squeezing my cheeks, "Open."
I did, unable to resist the Alpha authority in his voice. He slid himself into my mouth, pushing me down him until my nose was buried in his hair. I gagged but he ignored it, pulling his hips back and thrusting forward into my throat again. Tears began to stream down my face as I realized we had an audience. The entire Cullen family standing around, reluctant to watch, but doing so anyway. No one dared speak up, to try to stop Aro from what he was doing to me. Not even Carlisle, no matter how much my eyes pleaded. Finally, he looked away.
Again, my head was jerked back. I coughed and gasped. Aro clicked his tongue in disapproval before pulling me to my feet and bending me over the bed, positioning himself behind me. That's when I realized what was happening. He was claiming me as his Beta.
-Volterra, Italy-
Eleazar had managed to keep his thoughts on the matter hidden until Edward had taken his family on a trip to the big city. The moment he had set eyes on the Child, though, it had been a struggle. Having served the Volturi Guard for some time, he was keen on all their laws. Such as the one prohibiting alliances of any kind between vampires and werewolves. How could his good friends do such a thing? Surely they were aware? Though, there was definitely something different about this particular one. Never had he seen such restraint before. She had growled once or twice but never made a move on them. Carlisle claimed it was their diet, and Eleazar didn't entirely doubt that. But there seemed to be something...more.
"What's wrong? Why must we leave?" Carmen had asked when Eleazar had finally made his decision. A difficult one it had been, but, as much as he valued his friendship with the Cullens, he could not allow such a thing to go unnoticed. After all, his true loyalty lay still with the Volturi. He was obligated to report such a thing.
"There is something urgent I must take care of," he had told her simply. He would fill her in on the details after they were on their way, in case anyone happened to overhear. When they informed their generous hosts of their early departure, the wolf seemed suspicious. Perhaps it had been unwise to mention he was a former Guard. But he hadn't been sure the Children of the Moon would even know who the Volturi were, though he supposed word got around. He could only hope she didn't decide to run. He feared what would become of the Cullens if she did.
Once in the air, he informed Carmen of his plan. While she frowned, she was supportive of his decision. But she appeared saddened that such a cruel fate would befall a creature that was so unlike the others of its kind. I told her that I would ask Aro for some sort of leniency for the wolf. When they touched down in Volterra, it was just after dark. They easily maneuvered the streets, making their way to the town square. The pair was allowed inside the main building and into the elevator, descending down to another, familiar reception area. The place hadn't changed since the last time they had been. They followed the hall, to the large double doors of the throne room.
They flew open.
The three leaders sat at the large table, each with documents before them. Aro looked up as the two entered, "Ah, Eleazar. To what do we owe the unexpected pleasure?"
He cleared his throat, stepping forward, "Regrettably, I must inform you of a… misdoing, by the Cullens."
Aro raised his eyebrows. Caius snapped his book shut, "For goodness sake, what have they done this time?"
Eleazar held his hands behind his back, "It would seem the Cullens are in possession of a Child of the Moon."
Aro shot across the room, reaching for Eleazar's hand, his voice urgent, "Let me see."
The former Volturi Guard gave him his hand. Aro gripped it tightly, staring into the distance. Eleazar watched as the man's features shifted. Slowly, his eyes refocused and his smile stretched further across his face, "I've found you at last, my dear."
