(7) "Sometimes the Right Thing for One Person is the Wrong Thing for Someone Else"
Odessa stared at the remains of her 'father.' He was but a pile of small, fragmented body parts coated with a thin layer of venom. She reached into her pocket and pulled out a lighter she kept on her person for emergencies. With a quick flick of her fingers, she ignited the lighter and threw it so it engulfed his last remnants in flames. She watched the flames turn him to ash, the flames dancing in her satisfied eyes. He got what was coming for him. He deserved to burn for all the pain he caused her, for all the remorse and tears and fear. The pleasure and gratification she felt in the moment, the giddiness at bringing him to his demise, brought a shiver to her spine. She shivered deliciously and basked in the foreign feeling overtaking her. A hand on her shoulder brought her out of her stupor.
She whipped her head around and stared into understanding crimson eyes. Alec squeezed her shoulder, whether in reassurance or restraint she did not know. His hand slid down her arm slowly, distracting her from her thoughts. She followed the tantalizing movement as his hand ghosted over her bare arm and down to her hand. He grasped her hand in his and pulled her away from the now smoking pile of ash and towards Aro, who was sporting a mock expression of sympathy.
"My dear, I applaud you for facing your demons with such ferocity," he said. He reached for her hands and enveloped them in his without consent. Odessa tried pulling back, but the small pressure on her hands was warning enough. She gritted her teeth and stood there while he perused through her memories. Finally, he released her, and she took the opportunity to step away and walk away to collect her thoughts. It wasn't the time to get angry at others for invading her privacy. She would deal with that later. She had to focus on what mattered in the moment: her sisters.
She didn't even think to assess the consequences that came with killing Joham. She was so lost in her revenge and her sense of dishing out justice that she forgot Nahuel's words: "Serena is the oldest of them. She is much like Joham. She is sadistic and continues to try to persuade me to join them on their journeys. Maysun is the next oldest. She is not as bad as Serena, but she refuses to leave Joham's side. I am afraid she may turn out like Serena. Jennifer is the youngest. I like visiting her the most and am quite close to her. She is not as influenced by Joham as the others are and still retains some innocence."
They were all close to Joham, even Jennifer who must have formed some sort of bond to Joham on their travels. Although it could all be an act, the possibility of retaliation was huge. No doubt Odessa would have to anticipate an impending attack. Her stamina was already down from her attack on Joham, and she could already feel the effects of using her gift. A small headache pounded behind her eyes and her body felt more sluggish than usual. She only hoped the Volturi wouldn't let her sisters tear her to pieces when they regained their senses.
"Alec, why don't you allow our other three guests the liberty to speak?" Aro suggested. Alec nodded his head and relinquished his gift. The transparent wisps of black smoke slowly detached itself from the three hybrids and made its way back into Alec's palms. When the smoke was completely gone, the three hybrids gasped. Now that Odessa had a clear view of them, her eyes widened in surprise; none of them looked alike. They must have taken after their mothers.
"Where is our father?" one asked menacingly. She had brown hair highlighted by lighter wisps. Her eyes were teak, her skin was painted with a slight undertone, and her facial features were reminiscent of those found in Indian cultures. The amount of malice in her voice led Odessa to believe she was Serena.
"All will be explained," Aro said calmly.
"Who is she?" Orange hair and big round eyes the same shade as Odessa's. Her open face and short stature screamed innocence. Jennifer. That left Maysun, who was distinctly Asian; black straight hair that fell to her collarbones. Her eyes, too, were teak in color.
"I don't believe you have met before," Aro said. He gestured for Odessa to step forward and greet her sisters.
"We don't care about her. Where did our father go?" Maysun asked determinedly.
"Odessa, my dear. Won't you answer their questions?" Aro asked innocently. Odessa clenched her teeth and balled up her fists. She cursed Aro for putting her in the spotlight when it was them who were there first. She rolled her shoulders back and held her head high before she approached the trio. It was now or never. Discreetly, she took a deep breath and plastered a small smile on her face.
"It is nice to finally meet you all. Nahuel has told me so much about you," she said as pleasantly as possible. Serena and Maysun eyed her with distrust while Jennifer glanced at her curiously. "I am Odessa, Joham's first born and your sister."
"So, you're the one father talks so much about," Maysun surmised. "You aren't anything like I thought you would be."
"Is that a bad thing?" Odessa asked.
"Not necessarily."
"Why have you come?" Serena demanded. "What did you do to Joham?"
Odessa grimaced and said, "I did what was necessary."
"What did you do?!" Serena yelled. Maysun held her back from charging and whispered something in her ear.
"I killed him," Odessa stated bluntly, "and for good reason, too. I am not sure how he acted around you, but his actions and attitude when I was with him were atrocious and heinous. Nothing good would come of the world if Joham still lived."
"That wasn't your decision to make!" Serena shouted. "Who are you to play judge and executioner?"
"I deserved my justice!" Odessa yelled. "You have no idea what I went through with Joham. The emotional torture, the physical abuse, the fear I felt. Instead of blindly following his will I forged my own path."
"Should I kill you next, then? Since you have emotionally traumatized me?" Serena asked ominously.
"It would be in your best interest to not harm her, lest you want to join your father," Alec bit out with a cynical smirk.
"You killed him based on what you experienced," Maysun said coldly. "We didn't have the same childhood, obviously. We were treated well and respected Joham even if you weren't and didn't."
"All bad deeds have consequences."
"You're being so cold," Jennfer complained to Odessa. "You claim we're your sisters, but you killed someone who was important to us."
"Nahuel said you were innocent, but I didn't think you were this ignorant."
"Enough of this useless banter," Caius interrupted.
"Agreed," Marcus said. "It is time we returned to Volterra."
"Then let us not wait any longer," Aro said. "We will leave the four of them to settle their differences."
The Volturi gathered behind the three leaders and waited for them to start the trek back to Volterra. Alec walked up to Odessa and placed a hand on her shoulder. He looked into her eyes, searching for something, and said, "I shall see you in a few days' time."
Odessa watched him reunite with his sister and walk off with the rest of the Volturi. That left her alone with her three half-sisters. She tensed and turned around to face them. They glared at her with something akin to hatred and watched her cautiously take a step back. Serena grinned victoriously and approached her in a taunting manner. Odessa didn't take her mind games lightly and growled in warning, hunching over slightly and taking a defensive position.
"What are you going to do now that you're all alone with no one to back you up?" Serena asked cockily.
"I will kill you, too, if I have to," Odessa gritted out. "Sister or not, I do not know you and I do not care to know you now that I see how deep your loyalty to Joham lies."
"You come to us with false pretense, announcing we are sisters, yet care so little about our well-being," Maysun stated. She stood a few paces behind Serena next to Jennifer with her arms crossed over her chest and an unimpressed look adorning her face. Jennifer chewed on her bottom lip furiously and glanced nervously between Maysun, Serena, and Odessa.
"Let's not fight, please," Jennifer pleaded. "Nothing ever goes right when we fight."
"Then how else, Jennifer?" Serena asked incredulously. "If she can dish out punishment as she sees fit, shouldn't I be able to, as well?"
"I admit I came under the pretense that our first meeting would solidify our status as sisters," Odessa admitted, "but I was wrong."
"You were wrong," Serena said. She rushed towards Odessa and swung her arm. Odessa dodged her attack and swiftly moved to the side. She caught Serena's side with a well-aimed punch and watched her fly across the clearing and land in a heap. Serena quickly stood up and continued her assault. She swung her limbs wildly, frantically trying to find purchase while Odessa ducked and weaved out of her grasp. Odessa found an opening and punched Serena in the face. A sickening crack echoed through the air as Serena gasped and clutched her face in horror. Odessa smirked and reveled in her small victory. She knew she wasn't a good fighter, so Serena's fighting skills had to be nonexistent.
"You're going to pay for that," Serena snarled around her pain.
"Are you sure about that?" Odessa taunted. "So far, I am the only one between the two of us that has not one scratch."
Serena screamed in frustration and threw herself at Odessa, catching the eldest daughter off guard and causing her to fall to the floor. Serena straddled Odessa, holding her in place, and started a direct assault on her. Odessa held her arms up to cover her face, but Serena was able to avoid them and hit Odessa in the face. A shot of pain rang travelled throughout Odessa's body and she cried out. Another blow to her face had Odessa flailing about. Serena grabbed Odessa's flailing arms and held them to the ground. She leaned in so her face was even with Odessa's and grinned sinisterly.
"I'm going to make you wish you never met me," Serena whispered. She pulled her arm back and launched it towards Odessa's body. Odessa closed her eyes and tensed up. But it never came. She opened her eyes and saw Nahuel standing right behind Serena with her wrist in his hand.
"Stop, Serena," he said sternly. "We should not be fighting with those closest to us."
Serena ripped her wrist from his grasp and jumped backward. She positioned herself next to Maysun and Jennifer. Odessa used the opportunity to stand up and assess herself for any terrible injuries. Thankfully, the only pain she felt was in her face, and it was slowly going away. She glanced around the clearing and noticed Huilen standing off to the side with an unimpressed expression on her face.
"She is nothing to me or us," Serena stated heatedly. "I am not close to her nor will I ever be!"
"You are mad at the wrong person, Serena," Nahuel said. "Odessa is not our enemy."
"She became one when she killed Joham."
Nahuel did not look surprised, as he shouldn't. Odessa had warned him about her plans and promised not to hurt any of the sisters. While she may have broken that promise, it was all in self-defense.
"You are hurting," Nahuel stated.
"Of course, I am! Joham was my father! What if she had killed Huilen?" Serena asked.
Nahuel's eyes scrunched together as he contemplated her scenario and said, "I understand."
"Do you?" Maysun questioned.
"I do," he confirmed. "But I do not wish to start a fight over this."
"Your pacifism is not welcome," Serena said.
"It does not matter," Nahuel shook his head, "I will not allow you to kill Odessa, our sister. I wish to know her better. Come. We should go to my house and talk this over."
"Maybe you can play nice with her, but I cannot," Serena said. "Come, Jennifer, Maysun. For Odessa's sake, let's hope we never meet again."
The three of them left without a glance back. Odessa sighed and ran a hand over her face. She messed up. She should have blamed it on the Volturi. She shouldn't have confessed at all. Really, what was she thinking? She berated herself over and over, not noticing Nahuel walking up to her. He placed a hand on her shoulder, causing her to stop her endless thoughts and turn her attention to him.
"You did what you thought was right. Do not stay mad at yourself for long," he said.
"Nahuel is right," Huilen cut in. "You did what you thought was right, what was best for everyone. Joham should have never been able to run freely around the world to sentence people to death. You stopped other women from being killed by his seduction, other women like Pire."
"I never said it was best for everyone, Huilen," Nahuel corrected.
Huilen smiled softly at Nahuel and said, "Nahuel will not admit it but he is glad Joham is dead, too. He does not want to say it because it would hurt his sisters, but he is grateful."
"It does not matter. I should go after them," Nahuel trailed off.
"Go, then," Odessa encouraged him. "It was nice meeting them, unbelievably, but I feel our relationship will not be as prominent as your relationship with them. And that is fine. I have heard that not all family is blood."
"Where will you go now? If you plan to live alone again in your cottage, you can live with us."
"I am going there but only to straighten some things out. My real destination is in Italy," she said.
"You wish to go to the Volturi?" Huilen asked. She eyeballed Odessa with wariness and took a step back from her.
"It was never my intention to go there when I decided to witness for the Cullens. However, I cannot help but feel pulled in that direction."
"Tell me you are not seeking power like Joham did," Nahuel pleaded.
Odessa shook her head and said, "Of course not. I am merely trying to find a missing piece of a puzzle."