CHAPTER EIGHT
Book Of Edward
I have never been more grateful to being able to read minds than tonight, When I saw my daughter's face in Emma's thoughts. My feelings were so intense and so conflicted, I felt a mixture of slight relief but overwhelming guilt and fear. I couldn't protect my daughter, it was my duty to keep her safe. I allowed this to happen, I failed her, I failed my family. In my long existence I never felt more at fault , more helpless, I couldn't look into Bella's eyes, I couldn't face her, I couldn't face my failure.
"She is okay, she just woke up," Emma eagerly announced, forgetting everything we put her through just a moment ago, our humiliating spectacle of distrust and paranoia. She was just so anxious for being able to help.
"She can hear a man and a woman talking, but she didn't see them yet, she thinks she is on a plane," Emma was meticulously reporting, every little detail Nessie was sending her.
"On a plane! oh my god, they are taking her away," Bella said in a quivery voice, broken and scared.
"Ask her if she can see the airlines, maybe we can know where they are heading," Jasper keenly asked.
"She is on a private jet," Emma instantly replied.
"They didn't take her for ransom then," Rosalie uttered disappointed but not really shocked.
"Wait, something happened I have lost her," Emma said distressed.
"What do you mean you lost her?! What exactly happened?!" Bella asked her tone a mixture of panic and frustration.
"I don't know, maybe we lost connection, maybe she is so far, or maybe she fell asleep again. I don't really know Bella, I am sorry," Emma faintly answered, puzzled.
"What if ... What if they... " Bella voice broke, she couldn't finish her sentence. She was terrified by the dreading possibilities.
"She is fine, I am sure of it. We will get her back, I promise you," These were my first words to her, a promise that with all my powers I intended to keep, I will get my daughter back, and I will cast hell itself upon those who took her. I reached out to her, trying to comfort her and seek comfort for myself. She threw herself into my embrace and wept, and even though there were no tears, our pain was more audible than the loudest of cries.
"I am sorry to say that, but they must be drugging her, it the easiest and safest way to move her," Carlisle said in a carefully measured tone.
"How could we have ever missed the tracks of a man and a woman, no trail, no scents, no trillium, nothing," Emmet wondered confused.
"At first it was only the vampire I warned you about, but when you discovered his tricks he called for a witch to cover his tracks and keep you blind. Our elders sensed her presence, but because they believed Seth was under a dark spell, they assumed Emma was the witch," Jacob hesitantly broke his silence, shying away from the misunderstanding that could have led to a disaster.
"And instead of running this info by us, you chose to plan her execution," I snapped venting all my anger toward him.
"This is not the time to throw blames," Alice said slowly and calmly trying to absorb my rage.
"We have to wait for her to contact Emma again, there is nothing else we can do now. We still don't have any info about her location," Esme whispered, the pain in her voice shattered my heart like broken glass and added to my hindrance and torment.
"It must be Aro, no one else would do it. No one else hold a grudge against our family, no one else would have the time, the patience, and the expenses to plan this," I made the obvious deduction, it didn't need an expert to figure out the Volturi must be behind this.
"I agree, he wants to take the fight that should have happened between us a year and a half ago into his lair, no witnesses, no extra help. Having Nessie would also be a huge advantage for them," Jasper added.
"Then what we are waiting for, let's take the next flight to Italy and safe my daughter," Bella instantly suggested, eager and alarmingly impatient.
"That's really a bad idea Bella, we are not a hundred percent sure it was them, I mean Nessie became famous after what happened last year, and many vampires are curious about her. But even if it was the Volturi, going without a tight plan would be a suicide mission. Besides even if Aro has Nessie, we don't know if he is keeping her in their castle or not, we need to confirm a few things before we take any decisions," Carlisle said cautious of her reaction.
Emma fell asleep on the coach, as we debated what our next move should be.
"No, no, no She can't sleep, not now. I put up with her bullshit long enough, I won't tolerate it any longer," Bella said, her voice was stronger now, edged by desperation. I held her back restraining her from hurting Emma.
"she needs to wake up, I need to know where my daughter is, I don't know how long I can take this, I am falling apart here, can't you see," Bella raged, dread rising in her throat.
"It's been a tough night for all of us. She is no good to us exhausted and worn out, let her be. I am carefully reading her thoughts darling, anything she sees I see," I whispered gently, trying to contain her rage but failing.
"Don't you think it's convenient how she only was able to make contact with our baby when she was already on a plane far away from here," she argued, casting more suspicious doubts and evil glares towards Emma.
"Come on Bella, please don't start with this again. She chose to stay, she chose to help," I pleaded, fed up with all the nonsense accusations.
"I still believe she is misleading us, showing us only what she wants," she insisted, completely ignoring my pleads.
"I just told you I am closely reading her thoughts."
"Really! Her thoughts! She fooled you for a hundred years, showing you only what she wants. If some one knows how to manipulate your mind reading ability, it's her," she interrupted me, defending her allegation with all she got.
"All I know now Bella, is that she is the only hope we have for saving our daughter, I am not asking you to be grateful but at least don't be resentful. Put you paranoia aside and give her the benefit of the doubts, at least for now," I spoke in a feeble voice trying to reason with her.
"Paranoia?!" she fiercely screamed, her anger became magnified, intensified and beyond control. She slammed her hands hard against my chest, physically enacting her anger towards me as she continued her rage,
"I blame you too you know, you caused all this. You knew my feelings were conflicted, you knew I was obsessed and distracted. All of you knew, but no one cared about me. All you cared about was her, and now my daughter is gone and you are all sitting around waiting for her to guide us!" she tried to choke back her fear, her pain, but it was too much, I could feel it overwhelming her.
Emma gasped as she woke up with a vision of Nessie, she was at what seemed like a cheap motel room.
"Well she is not at the Volturi castle, that's for sure," I said bluntly, not really knowing if I should be relieved or more worried.
It has been another difficult day for us all, but specially for me and Bella. Emma's visions were not much of a help. Nessie hadn't moved out of that motel room, nor had she seen any of her kidnappers. We all agreed that even if the kidnappers were working for Aro we have a better chance of saving her if we face them away from the Volturi army. So I tried to search through Nessie's messages for any clue that may lead us to her location, any unusual sound, any picture, but with no success. Time was our enemy, impatience and anticipation were our trait, anger and frustration were our companions.
Then suddenly what we all silently feared just happened, I saw clearly through Emma's thoughts my biggest horror come to life. A face clouded by darkness was taking my daughter's blood, collecting it in small vials. I could feel the rage boiling through me, my desire for vengeance consumed me, yet I never felt more weak, more powerless. The fear and pain in my daughter's eyes tore at my heart and left me broken and defeated.
I was grateful Bella was spared the pain and sorrow of seeing our daughter like that. I wished I could discretely communicate with Emma, to bring to her attention to keep this tragic detail from everyone else, but she was busy connecting with Nessie, trying her best to ease her pain. She left nothing unsaid to comfort her. She asked her to be patient and brave and promised her a very soon rescue. Emma was the only cling of hope Nessie had, the voice of comfort, peace and optimism. Their bond was the only good thing coming out of this mess.
Bella read through our stretched silence, her suspicious eyes were closely monitoring us.
"What's wrong?!" she asked hastily, in a strangled tone of voice.
"Nothing," I immediately replied, from the corner of my eye I motioned Emma to be discrete.
"You two are hiding something, aren't you?!" she demanded, turning her doubtful gaze toward Emma this time.
"Really Bella, it is nothing," I must have sounded more frustrated than I realized, because now I got the attention of everyone in the room. I could tell Emma was forcing herself to keep a calm expression on her face, a face that no one of my family would buy. Something, I needed something to tell them, anything that might calm them down a bit. Help came from Nessie herself, she just got a clear glimpse of her vampire kidnapper. A vaguely familiar face, a face I saw before, but have no memory of where exactly.
"She just saw the vampire," I instantly announced, still puzzled by his identity.
"Well that's great," Alice said optimistic, but still stressed.
"That would definitely help," Jasper encouraged.
"I actually recall seeing him, but I just can't remember where."
"Here try to draw a picture of him, may be we could help," Carlisle proposed, handing me a sketch pad and a pencil.
It didn't take me long to get his facial details on paper, Nessie's image was carved in my brain. I finally got a lead and I was determined to make the best of it.
But when I showed them the sketch, no one seemed to recognize him, not even distantly. I wasn't sure about my memory of him myself, it was dim, ambiguous, scattered somewhere in my subconscious.
"May be it is someone you saw at my father's wedding, someone from the department, a neighbor. Someone who was close to us but still totally invisible," Bella suggested, anxious but for the first time hopeful.
"May be I should run by my dad's and get the wedding photos, may be you can find him in one of the pictures," she continued as she rushed towards the door, Jacob on her tail.
"I may have a way to jog your memory, if you are willing to try," Emma offered a little uncertain and hesitant.
"I will do anything," I strongly accepted her offer, trying to take her tension off by giving her my full trust.
She requested for us to be alone, Carlisle office was the closest room, so we decided to head there. she stood close, facing me and held her hands up to my forehead and pressed her fingers tightly against my temples.
"This is going to take a lot of me and you, so please stay focused and try to make it worth," she whispered, her voice still shaky.
"You try to make it work," I said and smiled.
She thinly smiled back, obviously still tense. She closed her eyes and took a long deep breath,
"Close your eyes and focus on the man's image," she softly demanded, as she pushed her fingers further into my head, the pain was intense, I felt like my brain was being fried by a lightening bolt. Emma was suffering too I could feel her trembling, as if she was being electrocuted.
It was dark for a second, but when the pain was gone, it was bright sunlight. I swear I could smell the sea breeze filling my lungs. I could feel the warmth of the sun against my skin, there was no shining, no sparkles. This was a memory of my human life, a memory that I don't even recall.
"Dammit, this can't be happening," Emma uttered to herself.
"I don't understand, I can't remember this at all. Is this supposed to happen?!" I wondered, clueless.
"No, it didn't work. You are too strong for me. It was a stupid idea anyway," she replied disappointed and for some reason embarrassed.
"Embrace yourself, I will end this now," she continued, trying her best to remain calm, but her stress level was rising.
"No, wait. It's working, I am already seeing a memory, I just need to concentrate to find the right one," I urged her to wait, not sure if I was attached to that particular memory, or if I really wanted to search for another.
"No, you don't understand, I failed. I am not in your head, you are in mine," she confessed, downhearted and beaten.
"This is your memory?!" I asked confused.
"Yeah." the secret she was trying to evade was out.
I looked around me and there she was, standing close beside me on the beach, in a blue jersey dress. I hadn't noticed what I was wearing, except now, I wore a suit with the hat and everything. I grinned mesmerizing in the far distant memory. I got closer to the sea to see my reflection in the clear blue water. I was me again. I enjoyed the moment a bit too much, I kind of missed this life, missed being the young man who wore a suit to the beach.
"My eyes were blue!" I sighed and the pain in my heart was intense.
"Yes, they were," she confirmed, contented and complacent.
"This is so vivid, you kept every little detail," I told her gratified and amazed.
"This was the first time I saw you. It's my most treasured memory," she began tentatively, still reluctant to tell her story, as her memory played in both our heads.
"I was at the beach, I loved to collect shells. I was taken by a pink spotted heart shaped cockle shell, but when you picked it up before I did. I was captivated by you. I watched you whisper a wish into the shell and then threw it back into the sea."
"After you left, the waves brought the shell back to the shore. At that time, being young at heart, I thought it was a sign that we were meant to be together," she continued shying away from her feelings.
"I kept it, you know," she said, pulling the half of her necklace hidden in her dress, revealing the shell pendant. She tried to hide her tears, concerned by the thought that she'd probably made a mistake by blurting out her deepest emotions.
I gazed directly into her teary eyes, cradled her head in my hands and impulsively pressed my lips against hers. Our kiss felt different, the intensity of the feelings, the tenderness and warmth of her lips, the heat I felt rushing through my whole body and overwhelming me. We were still humans, we were still living in that memory, I was having my first real human kiss, and it was breathtaking. opening her thoughts and her emotions to me, and holding up our mental connection were wearing her out. I could see her mind fumbling, I could feel her lips shivering beneath mine, so I kissed her harder, more passionately. I wanted to take away all her grief and sorrow, I wanted to give her a moment of the better version of this story, the version she deserved.
But she used up all the strength she had left to push me away and then slapped me.
"Don't ever do this again," she threatened angry and agitated.
"You don't have to do this anymore, I don't need you fake kisses, or your fake love. I will find the strength to help you get Nessie back on my own. So please stop this, don't humiliate me any further," her voice broke. She was so serious and intent, yet so weak and broken.
I knew she wouldn't accept any word of justification I would say. she wouldn't allow herself to live that moment for what it was, a pure moment of honest love and affection. There was nothing fake about it, nothing at all.
"I am so sorry, I meant you no disrespect," I sincerely apologized, fake or not, she didn't deserve this discourtesy from me.
Her face unwillingly beamed, "You just sounded exactly like you did a hundred years ago," she said, her mouth involuntarily twisting into a smile. We both laughed satisfied by the nostalgia.
"You know if Bella walked in on us, it would have been a disaster, she would have accused me of master planning all this," she muttered under her breath.
"She doesn't know you as the rest of us do."
"I know, and believe me I have no problem at all with all her accusations. It's good for her to have someone to blame, someone to vent her anger and frustration at. In a very sick way I am actually helping her," she added, her feeling were genuine and honest.
"Can we try again? I promise to focus this time."
"Okay, but try to submit a bit. Once in your existence let me take control," she put emphasis on every word.
We started over, she channeled her special ability, and pushed herself inside my head. The pain was overwhelming this time, and my mind was pushed up to the highest performance levels.
When my thoughts came to focus I was in the high school cafeteria, sitting across the table from Bella.
"This is the first time you met her isn't it?!" Emma whispered.
"Yes," I confirmed.
"See this is your most precious memory Edward, don't ever forget that, I know I won't."
I could feel the pain and loneliness in her tone.
"Now, put all your focus on that man's face," she gently requested.
I saw all my memories run through my head like animated pictures on a huge wall. My mind was racing through them and then suddenly stopped. I was standing in front of Aro in the clearing last year, right before Alice showed up. I searched across all the surrounding faces, but none was remotely similar to that man. I dug deep into my head again, but I ended up at the same moment.
"I can't find him, he is like a ghost."
"Relax, your mind is pushing this memory for a reason, it must mean something. This is not random."
"He is not there I carefully searched."
"Don't search, let the memory play. May be you will find a clue somewhere that will lead us somewhere else," her voice was getting weaker as she forced the words out.
I did exactly what she told me, and watched that dreadful imprint play in my head. I watched Alice walking into our confrontation zone close after her were the young man similar to my daughter and his aunt, Nahuel and Huilen. I carefully followed the interrogation that Aro and Caius held for both of them.
The images from my memory were flickering as Emma's hands were shivering. She was barely holding the connection together. I pressed my hands over hers trying to stabilize them. I was pushing her beyond her limits, but I felt I was getting closer, I just needed a few more minutes.
It was not until Nahuel started talking about his father, that the man's image appeared. A face I knew, but never saw before. I only saw it in Nahuel thoughts.
"I got him, It's Joham, Nahuel's father," I screamed loud, proud of my achievement.
Emma dropped her hands onto my shoulders, exhausted, barely holding a faint smile. Her eyes went blank, as she collapsed, motionless, her face was pale, her skin rigid and cold.
"Carlisle, Carlisle," I shouted for help, as I cradled her in my arms.
Her fragile body started trembling with minor convulsions. She was totally drained and it was all my fault.
I watched breathlessly, as Carlisle turned his office into an ER room, he was trying everything he could to help Emma. He installed IV's in both her arms, and injected her with blood almost every where he could. I was terrified of losing her AGAIN. I could see him consumed and absorbed in his own thoughts, thinking of ways to bring her back, but then he had a crazy idea, he used the defibrillator but not to shock her heart, to shock her brain. After the third try she finally opened her eyes, and stared at Carlisle,
"We know who he is," she said weak and feeble, barely holding a smile.
"You did?!" Bella questioned, shooting an uneasy glance at me.
"We did. It's Joham, Nahuel's father, remember him. I never met him, but I saw him in that boy's thoughts," I instantly replied, casting an apologetic look at Bella.
"The mad vampire scientist, obsessed by making hybrids," Jasper commented, his "hybrid" word didn't go too well with me and Bella.
"Mind you , he calls them the new super-race," Alice mocked in disgust.
"Well it make sense if he is interested in Nessie, she is the only one that's not his," Carlisle added, and although he had a point, the idea of my daughter being a subject of mad experiments, sent chills down my spin, especially knowing that he is already taken some of her blood. Bella didn't swallow The idea either, her face tuned pale as she processed the terrifying thought.
"What are we waiting for, let's go meet Nahuel. He must have an idea about where his father is. He is probably the one who told his father about her in the first place," Bella said in commanding tone, trying to disguise her pain.
We didn't wait a second longer, we were consumed by fears and we needed to put an end to them. Even though Emma was still weak and fragile, we couldn't leave her behind. We needed her, even if it meant leading her to her end.
The flight didn't take long, but finding him did. Alice lead the way, but it wasn't easy to locate him as it was the first time. It felt as if he was hiding, and that just confirmed that he is involved in my daughter's kidnapping.
The South American forests were unsolved puzzles, puzzles that we urgently needed to unravel. We had no time to waste chasing Nahuel ghost. Every lead we had, took us to a dead end. You can't find some one who intentionally disappeared, we needed to push him out of the hiding hole he crawled into. Our frustration led us to desperate actions. We caused mayhem in his tribe, we burned houses and killed animals, and threaten to kill his people if he doesn't show up. A threat that I intended with all my power to fulfill. I am going to get my daughter back even if the cost is to further condemn my soul.
By the early hours of dawn, he jumped through the window of my hotel room, but he wasn't the same young man we saw a year ago. His face was pale, his body was weak, and he was utterly scared and constantly looking over his shoulders.
"Where is my daughter?" I fiercely asked graping him by the neck.
"Your daughter! I have no idea where your daughter is?" he replied, confused.
"Your father kidnapped her, I need to know where he is right now," I demanded, stressing every word, I was loosing my head and had no time for stalling.
"My father! I didn't see him for over nine months now. He came to see me a few weeks after the day I came to witness for you in front of the Volturi. He told me that the Volturi guards were looking for him every where. He wanted to know what exactly I told them. He said that they already took Maysun and Jennifer my sisters. He advised me to hide because they will probably come for me too."
"I grieved for my sisters and didn't care much for his warnings, but a few days later the forest was filled with Volturi guards. They were searching high and low for me, they even took my aunt. All this because of me and my big mouth," his voice broke as tears flooded his face.
"I don't know why my father took your daughter or how she fits in all of this. But please, my tribe has nothing to do with this, they did you no harm. They don't deserve to be punished for a sin they didn't commit, please I beg of you, leave them be," he pleaded defeated and powerless.
"Your tribe would be safe Nahuel, don't worry, you have my word. We are sorry we caused you all this," Bella rushed to comfort the broken boy, burdened by guilt. After all we are the ones who dragged him into this Volturi conflict. No one would have known anything about him or about his father if it weren't for us.
"Do you have any idea where your father might be?!" I asked, frustrated.
"No, I am really sorry. But if I hear anything from him I will contact you immediately," he promised sincere and honest.
He asked for a permission to leave, then jumped out of the window the same way he came.
"The Volturi, I knew they won't leave us alone," Bella enraged, bitter and resentful.
I was beyond angry, fear controlled my thoughts, my mind was burning with agony. I wasn't sure exactly how my brain was processing all this, or what should I do next. My inner battle was fierce and I was struggling to even have one clear thought.
Esme walked through our room door, her face carrying so much fear and concerns.
"What's it?!" I questioned worried.
"Emma had another message," she said carefully, trying to mask her apprehension. Whatever she was going to say next was scaring the hell out of her.
"She says that Nessie was moved and she recognized the new place she is in," she slowly continued.
"Well that's great, where is she?!" Bella requested hopeful, but I knew better. The message Esme was carrying was a huge burden on her.
"Nessie is in Emma's room, the room she used to stay in when she was living with the Volturi."
That was the dreadful message, that was what we all feared. The Volturi have my daughter in their fortress, locked up behind a hundred doors and restrained by hundreds of the most lethal guards in the world.