My Queens: Chapter 6
Summary: Bella takes a trip of a lifetime, but all is not as it seems.
Bella/Athenodora, Didyme, Sulpicia
"Where are they…" Emmett started to question, but Carlisle didn't give him a chance.
"Aro, thank you for accommodating us. We will make our way to the villa now."
"Anything for you, old friend," Aro said, waving away his thanks. "Oh, might I ask? Which of you thought Bella to fight?" After what Bella did to Corin, he had been beyond curious. It was the day he realized the girl had known about vampires long before she tripped over his feet at the airport. Of course, today, his suspicions had been confirmed.
"That would be me," Jasper answered.
"How you managed to teach a human to fight a vampire is beyond me. Quite impressive, Major Whitlock." Aro praised.
"Thank you." Jasper would admit he felt a little smug.
Carlisle, I would like to talk to you in a few days. Bella brought up a concern some time ago, and I believe it is valid. I do think it is something we can work on." Aro intoned.
"Yes, of course," Carlisle replied, his interest clearly peaked. "Come on, son." He gently ushered Edward out, who seemed rooted to the spot.
"So were you there when Bella kicked Corin's ass," Emmett asked, eager for details. All he knew was that Bella had put Corin in her place. In truth, Alice had stopped monitoring Corin the day she tried to goad Bella two weeks into her vampire existence. Alice had seen the events that would take place in Didyme's garden then. It was the turning point in how the Volturi saw the queen's mate. Alice could finally relax after a decade of watching so many decisions to ensure Bella had the life she deserved. Everything they knew about their little sister was because she told them.
"Yes, we all were. Hard to miss when Corin came flying through the wall into the corridor. Have you seen the thickness of these stones?" Felix chuckled.
"So, what happened," Emmett asked impatiently.
"I taught Corin to fight. She wasn't keen on learning to fight and so only learned enough to defend herself and incapacitate a newborn. She would only have to fight if we found ourselves dealing with a large-scale insurrection and that mostly involves newborns." Jasper nodded. He more than most understood that. It was also what Victoria had been attempting to do before they went to Seattle and put her down. "I also know she telegraphs her kicks and punches. Anyone with decent fight training can see it coming a mile away. Newborns, though aren't focused enough to see it, so it was never a concern. It took a couple of punches, and Bella had her figured out. She dodged every single punch and kick with barely any effort. Bella would not have broken a sweat if we were capable of sweating.
Then she gave Corin the chance to apologize; she should have taken it.
The first punch was an uppercut that took Corin off her feet; she landed on the already broken stone bench and destroyed it beyond repair. Bella stood back and inspected her nails. It was a valid concern. A vampire's face was capable of breaking a nail. Corin charged, seeming to forget her first failed attempt. Bella again sidestepped and punched the vampire's rips; everyone heard them break. If Corin thought she would have time for the bones to snap back, she was sorely mistaken. Bella followed with a kick to her knee, which dropped the vampire to her knees. Corin brought her hand up just in time to block a kick to the face, but the power and speed made the block a futile attempt.
"Do the decent thing and apologize." Bella gave her another chance. Corin stood, and Bella believed she was going to apologize for a split second. Instead, she charged again, this time going low, hoping to sweep Bella off her feet. Bella's knee came up, connecting with the vampire's nose, which looked unrecognizable. It was followed by more punches and kicks. In the end, Bella had delivered ninety-seven punches and kicks combined, just as Corin had attempted. Corin had lost both limbs and a leg, and Bella wasn't done.
"I believe your inability to apologize was because you couldn't find the words so, I will help you out." Bella kneeled by Corin. "Isabella, I am sorry for attacking you. It was foolish and uncalled for." Bella intoned.
Corin looked into the eyes of the newborn, and every ounce of defiance bled out of her. "I am sorry for attacking you. It was foolish and uncalled for." She recited. Bella wasn't idiotic enough to take the apology at face value. If Corin truly meant it, she would have used her own words.
"Come for me again, and it will be the last thing you do. I might be a typical newborn because I am still trying to get used to my increased strength and acute senses, but that is where the similarities end. You are so small in comparison to me. I am invincible." Bella growled, standing up.
"Tearing limbs is not allowed inside the walls of the castle. It is a punishable offense." Chelsea blustered.
"You are right." Athenodora said, "But since we failed to make Bella aware of the rule, she cannot be punished for something she was not made aware of. The fault lies with us. Do you want to punish us, Chelsea?" The vampire blanched and shook her head vigorously.
"Sorry about the bench, Didyme." Bella apologized.
"It's easily replaceable." She murmured. Felix noticed the newborn did not have a hair out of place.
"Worse, Corin spent days having to listen to Bella and the queens. The speed in which they dragged Bella to Athenodora's chambers was comical… for the rest of us at least." Felix chuckled.
"I always knew Bella bear was a badass." Emmett cheered.
"Emmett, enough of the inappropriate language," Esme warned.
"But it's extremely appropriate for the subject matter." He grumbled.
"Emmett." Esme's tone was warning enough.
"Sorry, but all Alice would tell us was it was dealt with. So forgive my eagerness to know the intimate details." Alice rolled her eyes at him.
"The problem with Corin is that she had always seen herself as much more than she actually was. How did Bella put it? Delusions of grandeur. Athenodora has a handful of real loves in her life, her brother, Marcus, Aro, Didyme, and Sulpicia. Corin falsely believed she was on that list. No, what she was a plaything, something Athenodora amused herself with. Yeah, she had Didyme and Sulpicia, but they all had their own ways of keeping the boredom at bay. No one else made the mistake of thinking they were more to them than they actually were. Even your friends the Denalis, spent a lot of intimate time with them before they all found their mates. Corin, on the other hand, walked around here as though she was the love of Athenodora's life. Of course, that delusion was soon ended when Bella showed up, and Corin did not take it well. It was bound to happen eventually." Felix said with a shrug.
"You guys haven't been here in a while," Felix commented as they arrive at the villa.
"Last time was thirty-one years ago. I believe Bella was talking about expanding the pool." Jasper said.
"Oh yeah, she expanded the pool alright." Demetri chortled. He and Heidi had both tagged along. Heidi had firmly removed herself from the trio of Corin, Chelsea, and Afton and joined Felix and Demetri.
"Is that…" Rosalie asked, her jaw hanging, which was unlike her, but the sight before her warranted it.
"Yes, the pool." Felix laughed.
"That is not a pool, that is a fucking river." Even Esme, for once, had to admit the language was appropriate for the situation.
"How big is it?" Alice asked.
"It takes up nearly two acres. It's the twenty-seventh largest pool in the world." Demetri added.
"Is the glass solid," Emmett asked as he stepped on it tentatively with just one foot. He doubted the glass would hold his weight.
"That is not glass; it's actually metal. It comes from four sides and meets in the middle. It will take some effort from even us to break it. Bella wanted her pool but didn't want to lose so much of the grounds either.
"Who needs a pool that big?" Alice murmured. The three guards looked at each other with knowing smiles.
"Whenever you hear Vivaldi's Four Seasons Summer come out here. You have never seen anything quite like it." Heidi was all smiles but giving nothing away.
"Oh, come on, what is it," Jasper asked.
"No, we do not want to ruin the surprise." Demetri chuckled much to the annoyance of the Cullens.
Felix opened the door to the guest house, which required a scan of his irises. "I just need to scan your irises and set up passwords for each of you. Then we'd be out of your ear." The system was set up for fingerprints as well, but since vampires did not have any, it was pointless.
"Can I access the games room," Emmett asked. He often played online with the twins, so he knew Bella had a state-of-the-art gaming setup he was pretty envious of. Rose and Esme, unfortunately, would not let him have one.
"Yes, that is the outhouse over there." Felix pointed to a structure that looked like a hanger that could hold three or four private jets.
"I'm sorry, that is not a room." Emmett damn near choked on his words.
"Technically, it is. It only has one room." Felix added. "The virtual reality platforms take up a lot of room.
"I'm sorry… did you say virtual reality platforms." Rosalie rolled her eyes at her husband's antics.
"You married him." Alice quipped.
"I know." She sighed.
"I'm going first." Emmett settled in front of Felix, eyes glued to the large outbuilding that the twins called a games room.
"Where is my phone, Isabella." Athenodora groused.
"Again, I don't know since I do not have it," Bella replied rather calmly, considering it was the umpteenth time she had denied taking the phone.
"You are the only one that had an issue with me calling the Cullens and asking why they brought that waste of space with them. So, it stands to reason…"
"All of a sudden, you are Sherlock Holmes, Hercule Poirot, and Ms. Marple all rolled into one." Bella quickly interjected. "Athenodora, I'm only going to say this for the last time. I. Did. Not. Take. Your. Fucking. Phone." She turned to the twins. "You two have these two rooms, and for the love of all that is holy, try not to break your rooms beyond repair."
"Okay." They parroted as though ice wouldn't stay frozen in their palms.
"Uh-huh," Bella grumbled before heading up to her room. As much as they loved each other, they still enjoyed their own space. That is why she rented one of the Obsidian residences. Five bedrooms could sleep ten, so it suited them very well, and they also had some semblance of privacy.
She hadn't particularly liked it the last time they were there in 2019, but the revamp of Mammoth Mountain had caught her attention, and here she was.
Athenodora was in her room before she could shut the door behind her. She pushed Bella against the wall and started searching. Bella stood with a bemused look as Athenodora ripped her clothes off, searching for her phone.
"Would you like to perform a cavity search while you are at it?" Bella snarked as the door to her bedroom opened. She did not bother to cover up as she knew it was her other two mates.
"What's happening here?" Sulpicia asked, barely holding on to her laughter.
"Your fellow queen is still searching for her phone," Bella replied, her eyes on Didyme, whose eyes roamed over Bella in lace boy shorts and nothing else.
"Oh, it fell out of your pocket while you were getting out of the car," Sulpicia said with a nonchalance that none of them bought. Bella scowled while Athenodora looked ready to kill her. Sulpicia could clearly see it coming as she bolted out the door, Athenodora hot on her heels.
"How did you put up with that for three thousand years?" Bella asked as Didyme shut the door behind the other two.
"Oh, it has its perks," Didyme whispered, leaping into Bella's arms. She was worried about the twins breaking the rental when she should have been worried about her mates. Bella pinned her against the wall kissing furiously while slowly grinding her hips into her mate. There was a single-minded focus to all of Bella's actions, and one her mates loved that during sex. Didyme was thoroughly kissed, and after fifty years, you'd think she'd be used to the intensity of it all.
Much to Didyme's annoyance, they are soon interrupted. "I strip her, and you get the reward." Athenodora purred.
"You left; I couldn't let it go to waste," Didyme replied as Bella put her down on her feet with a resigned sigh.
"Why are you stopping? I'm sure Didyme will love for you to finish what you started." Sulpicia slid in behind Bella, her fingers trailing over her ribs lightly. Bella squirmed and tried to get away from the fingers. Sulpicia chuckled; she loved doing that, knowing full well Bella hated it. It was the overly sensitive part of her skin, and her mates had, of course, found it. "Sulpicia." Bella groaned.
"Yes, Isabella." She sang much to Athenodora and Didyme's amusement. Knowing full well there was a thin line between mild irritation and Bella throwing them out of her bedroom, she pulled her fingers away.
Sulpicia would admit that Bella dealt with having three mates incredibly well. The three of them weren't easy; it was why the kings had pretty much left them to their own devices. Didyme was the sweetest of them and Bella's favorite, something the girl often denied. Athenodora was the worst of them and the one Bella found the most exasperating. The one she often took her frustrations out on. Athenodora liked it rough, and Bella was more than happy to oblige, much to Corin's horror. Time and again, Bella rubbed Corin's face in their sexual escapades. The vampire had even once been called to Athenodora's room, only to find Athenodora on her knees greedily eating Bella out. Demetri had told her Corin had cried that day and asked to leave the Volturi. Of course, it was so much more than just walking in on them. No, reality had finally hit to just how little Athenodora thought of her. Bella was not the vindictive type, but Corin pretending Bella didn't exist, and her constant attempts at flirting with Athenodora warranted it. You would think after the humiliation she suffered at a newborn Bella's hand; she would have learned her lesson.
To Corin's surprise, Aro told her she was free to leave. Aro, of course, reminded Corin she had no experience as a nomad. She had no finances of her own, and as a member of the Volturi for five hundred years, would make her a target. It would not matter that she had left; some would still come after her in some form of vengeance. Corin had walked back to her chambers with her tail between her legs.
She had gone from pathetically seeking Athenodora's attention to staying clear of the queen.
"You seem deep in thought," Bella murmured, leaning against Sulpicia, whose fingers had found Bella's clit and rubbing in tight circles.
"I would not be hurt if Didi is your favorite. She is mine after all… well, that was before you came." Sulpicia purred.
"I don't have favorites." Bella whimpered.
"No need to lie to spare their feeling," Didyme murmured, getting on her knees.
"She can deny it all she wants. We know the truth. The proof is in the fact that she has never said no to Didi." Athenodora added.
"Yes, I have." Bella's attempt at indignation flamed out when she felt Didyme's tongue on her clit. "Fuck." She moaned. There was something rather erotic about the fact that she did not have a stitch of clothing on while her mates were still fully clothed.
"How long after your 'no' did you then capitulate?" Athenodora ran her hand over Bella's breast before pinching her nipple painfully.
"I don't know." She lied. She had caved a mere fifteen minutes after she said no. She had called Alice, who had arranged for a tux to be delivered. Didyme walked outside expecting Santiago with a car but instead found Bella waiting for her by her Aston Martin Vanquish. Bella had then spent several tedious hours at a party hosted to thank Didyme for her contribution to the renovation of the local opera house.
"Tell the truth, Isabella, and it shall set you free." Didyme's fingers had joined her tongue.
"I don't remember." Her words had just barely left her mouth when a harsh bite to her clit sent her over the edge.
Her entire weight was supported by Sulpicia, who stepped back and sent Bella sprawling. "Edward Cullen is right; you people are monsters."
"That we are." She laughed as Bella glared at her. That glare soon turned to lust when her mates slowly started stripping out of their clothes. Nothing Bella loved more than when they slowly removed clothes, revealing pale flawless skin inch by inch. She stayed on the floor watching them. It was more likely to survive than the bed.
Forks is a stone's throw away from California compared to Tuscany. In truth, she has no reason to visit the small town anymore, but she found herself there anyway. Charlie passed nearly a decade ago in his sleep. For a man who spent the first half of his life on beer and junk food, he lived a long life. Of course, that was all thanks to Sue Clearwater, her first husband had died of a heart attack due in part to not taking care of himself. She was not about to let it happen to her second.
She laid a large bouquet of flowers on his headstone. "I know, I'm doing the very thing I always said was entirely useless. Worse, I'm also talking to you as if you are here. I have realized it's a comfort thing. It's got nothing to do with what I believe or don't believe. I miss you so much; some days, I'm almost paralyzed by it. I love you, dad, and give my love to Sue. That is if this nonsense that you can hear me is actually true." Annoyingly, her watch vibrated just then, but she ignored it.
She walked through the forest at a leisurely pace. The house came into view before she had cleared the forest. Bella stepped back into the shadows when the back door opened. A smile soon graced her features when she recognized the figure. "Well, if it isn't Mrs. Clearwater." The vampire in question whirled around at the sound of her voice and smiled.
"Well, hello, trouble." Tanya teased.
"Hey, trouble has not darkened my doorway in decades," Bella replied hauntingly.
"Really, not from the video… wait, you didn't buy the house, did you?" Tanya's reply veered as it seemed too much of a coincidence that Bella was there the very day the house sold.
"No, had I known it was still in the family, I wouldn't be sneaking in through the forest," Bella murmured.
"Yeah, Seth finally put it on the market. We thought we'd have time to clear it out. It sold mere hours after the listing went up." Tanya said, looking at the boxes that littered the back porch.
"I'm surprised he kept it after all this time," Bella murmured. Sue died twelve years ago. Leah had long ago left the state and now called Dublin home.
"He kept changing his mind." Tanya shrugged. The wolf in question burst through the backdoor and had her in a hug before she'd uttered a word.
"Didn't think I'd be seeing you for another three weeks." Seth cheered.
"Seth," Tanya growled.
"Oops," Seth mumbled sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck. "Erm…"
"Don't worry about it; Edward Cullen found out I was a vampire and naturally came to the castle to rescue me. My mate's birthday party is no longer a surprise." Seth burst into laughter.
"Oh, I'd have given anything to have been a fly on the wall for that one." Seth kept laughing.
"I've got it on video." Tanya intoned.
"Oh, I'm going to kill those two." Bella groaned while Seth was practically hopping from foot to foot, eager to see it.
"Okay, first of all, we didn't send it." The troublesome twosome in question piped up.
"No, but you sent it to Emmett, who you know more than likely sent it to everyone in the vampire world." Bella retorted.
"Yeah." The two parroted without an ounce of regret.
"So, you don't remember him?" Tanya asked, but it was clear she didn't believe it.
"Of course, I remember the idiot," Bella grumbled.
"I suspected as much," Tanya mumbled with a chuckle.
"All of a sudden, I don't like where my thought is headed." Bella groused, swiping at her watch. "Alice, any chance any of you just bought a house in Forks?" Bella damn near barked.
"Hello, Bella. We are wonderful, thank you for asking. The guest house is just superb." Alice snarked, earning an eye roll in question.
"Good for you, now answer my question."
"No, why?" Alice asked. Bella ended the call without a reply. Her watch vibrated on her wrist; she ignored it, knowing it was Alice calling her an asshole or something along those lines.
"Are you really that worried about what he will do?" Tanya asked.
"Yes, since Edward fucking Cullen turned up, I've been waiting for the other shoe to drop," Bella admitted with a sigh.
"And yet you won't let me kill him," Athenodora said.
"Did you lot just wait in the forest to make the perfect entrance with a perfect retort to boot?" Bella groaned.
"No, we are just perfect like that." Sulpicia purred. "Tanya, how lovely to see you." She added, greeting her with a kiss on the cheek, one that lingered a little too long.
"Hands off my imprint," Seth growled playfully, coming back out after watching the video.
"Well, hello, my little puppy." Sulpicia teased.
"Well, hello, Elvira." Seth retorted much to everyone's amusement.
"Do you guys need any help packing up the house?" Bella interjected.
"No, we are done, the house sold with all the furniture. It's just the personal stuff." Seth mumbled.
"It's clear you don't want to sell, so why are you," Athenodora asked.
"I can't keep coming down here to check on the house. Yesterday, the neighbor commented that Tanya and I had not aged in ten years. I can no longer go to La Push; there are people I went to school with still living there. Maybe in a few decades, we can come back, but it's time to say goodbye to Forks." Seth mumbled sadly.
Bella had attended Charlie's funeral from a distance; that had hurt considering how close they were. Yes, she could have done what Seth was doing and pretended she was her own grandchild, but then questions about her mother and grandmother would come up. She just did not have it in her to concoct lies on the day of her father's funeral.
"So, where are you headed?" Bella asked.
"Actually, we are going to Dublin," Tanya answered. The air of melancholy around Seth faded at those words.
"Yeah, Leah has been on our case about it for a while, so we thought why not." Seth cheered.
"Is she coming to this nonsense of a birthday party?" Bella asked. The guest list had Bella feeling a little happier about this forced celebration.
"Of course, she is coming. You are the only one complaining." Athenodora groused.
"She is really looking forward to it. I think the last break they had was the last time they visited you guys." Seth mumbled. "Oh, I should warn her about Cullen." He added absentmindedly.
Bella had been beyond ecstatic when she learned her step-siblings would continue to shift. Leah had married a red fox shifter whose leash resided in Dublin. The community, unlike the Quileute, never stopped shifting. Though the community was mostly made up of red foxes, there were other animal shifters. There were also a few vampires and humans. Seth was joining them as a family physician. He also specialized in the care of shifters. It was in that role he met and imprinted on Tanya. Tanya had found a badly injured cougar, unable to shift back to his human form. She had called Carlisle, who gave her Seth's information. As luck would have it, Seth's practice was in Anchorage at the time, and he made it to Denali in a few hours. One look at Tanya and his world shifted. To say all who knew Tanya were happy for her was an understatement. Tanya was the last of her sisters to find a mate, and Bella believed they feared she never would. Seth had stopped shifting after Victoria was dealt with. He had focused on his studies, gotten a scholarship to Harvard, and gone on to study medicine at the same College. During his residency at the Olympic Medical Center, he started shifting again. Leah had met Conall around the same time. Finding a whole community of shifters with no real medical facilities for their kind had Seth shifting again, thanks to Peter and Charlotte.
Tanya, of course, was grateful he'd started shifting again. Had Seth not made that decision, she would have met Tanya as a fifty-two-year-old man. Instead of the fifty-two-year-old shifter who looked like a twenty-seven old year man.
"So, no one is shifting in La push?" Jane asked.
"No, no vampires around. And most of the people that shifted hated it. Hated what it did to their lives. Leah, only came to love it because of Conall and the fact that she could actually have children. We knew so little about ourselves, to begin with. Those of us that still shift actually left the res if can you believe it." Seth chuckled.
"So, who else still shifts?" Bella asked.
"Until a few months ago, it was me, Leah, and Jake. He stopped when he met his imprint, Marlene." Seth gave Bella his devastating puppy dog look, and she just knew what was coming.
"Don't want to hear it, Seth." Bella cut in before he could start.
"I'm not disputing the fact that he was an ass, but since he imprinted, he now understands." He pleaded.
"Don't care if he saw God." Bella retorted. "I will see you guys in a few weeks." She hugged the two, ignoring Seth's continued attempts to plead on Jake's behalf.
Bella turned at the tree line and watched the two in each other's arms laughing about something. "Are you alright, darling," Athenodora asked, taking Bella's hand in hers.
"Perfect." Bella smiled.