When I touch Mirania's fingers, I'm transported to a green garden opposite an old mossy house. The structure is big and full of windows letting the sun in. There is only the forest around it, making the home a private little world for the family that lives there. The two small chimneys blow smoke into the air, keeping the residents warm.
I observe myself in a school uniform, running towards the house, happy as a clam, carrying my school bag as I open the door and jump inside.
The image pulls me towards the house, but Mirania holds me back.
—Not yet. She says —This started before this day. Before you were born, I'll show you my memories first.
The scene changes again, and we are inside a dark laboratory, similar to the one we were before I dove into in the tank. Mirania, Giannini and Raffaello are stading still behind Padrone. He's arguing with a man in the shadows. The light is so dim I can barely tell he's there.
—Long before you were born, Mirania says, over the frozen image, —Padrone made a deal with the Volturi. He was allowed to experiment on any vampire deemed guilty of crimes deserving of death by them, and in exchange, all his research belonged to the Volturi.
Her eyes are sad and distant; her face is like she remembers terrible pain.
—Padrone was a scientist before changing into a vampire. He became obsessed with learning about a vampire's body and manipulating it. When the first half-vampires appeared, he was more obsessed with them than anyone. The idea that a vampire could create life opened a new world of possibilities. He tried to make his own vampires but was unsuccessful. He made only incomplete creatures that couldn't survive in the real world, but his years of research paid off anyway. He used the knowledge he gathered to modify vampires, bring forward their talents, and even make them stronger.
She takes a deep breath.
—When I joined him, I didn't have any powers, so he convinced me to volunteer and go through the procedure. He riped my limps apart in all possible ways. He said the stress would wake up my powers and I eventually developed them, but at the cost of my sanity. On this day, he was supposed to receive the body of the Cullen kid. She was rumored to be an immortal child, and when the Volturi came empty-handed he was… disappointed.
—It's my right! The image starts to move. Padrone is angry, screaming at the man in the shadows.
—There's nothing we can do. She's not an immortal child. His deep voice gives me the creeps.
—But she mocks your authority. You can't just let her walk away, spitting at the face of the noble Volturi. Padrone bows to the man, exaggerating his respect for his supposed noble status.
—Aro was convinced the child is not a threat to our race. We cannot be directly involved in any attacks against the Cullens or her.
Padrone lets out a quiet laugh —Of course, Felix. I understand, my friend. Have a safe trip back. He seems satisfied with the man's carefully selected words. Felix leaves the room, and Padrone turns to Mirania and the others.
—They are not very creative. He says, looking at one of the computers. —But they know I can do the job without implicating them directly. As long as I get what I want…
Padrone handles a few papers to Mirania and gives their orders.
—Take Cinque and collect these vampires for me. Mirania, you'll keep an eye on these two. I had different plans for them, but this will be perfect.
—Is there anything specific I have to keep an eye out for? Mirania asks.
—Anything out of the ordinary. Especially if they move somewhere distant.
—Yes, sir. They all answer together and leave the room as the scene goes dark.
—I watched them for many years as he told me to. One was a vampire, a man appearing to be around twenty years old. The other was a woman, a half-vampire. She looked about eighteen. They both had lived for around 100 years as vampires and were together. They lived in the shadows like we were supposed to. Hiding and not calling attention to themselves. They had a small family business to keep them afloat and were perfect at blending in. As Padrone said, they suddenly moved away, inside a cabin in the middle of a forest one day, so I reported back as he told me to.
The scene changes again. We are outside, hiding in the trees, away from a cabin with dim lights inside. I can hear the woman's screams inside, followed by the cries of a child.
—She got pregnant. I've seen a human give birth to a vampire before but never a half-vampire. She was supposed to be sterile, and that's why I believe Padrone was interested in her. Her talents abled her to create a miracle.
The scene changes again, and we are outside the cabin on a different day.
—They were happy. The child had grown a lot and appeared to be three years old at the time. Of course, the Volturi heard about the birth and sent someone to check.
Mirania is hiding in the trees, listening closely, but far enough so they won't notice her.
—She's not an immortal child. She's growing and developing. The man's voice is calm but full of fear. He's the father.
Another calm, masculine voice answers —I can see that. I'm here to give some advice. This… thing shouldn't be alive. You should send it back to hell where it belongs.
The child's mother answers, her voice cracking painfully. —Don't worry. We'll live in silence like aways. I'll make sure she won't be a problem to you.
—Don't forget we warned you. Mirania observes the man run out of the cabin, and we are transported back to the mossy house in the woods where I saw myself enter.
—After that, I told Padrone everything, and he told me to keep watching them. I observed the child grow until she was about seventeen and kept observing her until Padrone called to me.
She is looking at the house in silence. I try to speak but feel my body being pulled to the place. I'm part of the memory now.
—Mom! I shout, putting my stuff on the floor. —I'm home! I run to the second floor and can hear our dog Toby running towards me. His weight knocks me down, and now I have drool all over my uniform.
—Ew, Tobby! Sit! He pretends not to hear me and keeps drooling all over me.
—I told you to teach the dog to behave. My mother grabs Toby by the collar taking him off me. Her voice is always like bells in my ears. Familiar and recomforting.
—You won't believe it! I say, standing up and hugging her. —Freya got us tickets for that concert I told you about! Look! First row! I showed her the tickets my best friend got us to the best concert of the year!
She looks at the date and frowns. —Next month? She raises an eyebrow at me, and I pretend not to notice.
—Where is dad? Is he home already? I go downstairs to look for him. When I see he's not inside, I go to the backyard. No surprise, there he is. His skin is shining under the sun, like glass reflecting the light. He's trimming the bushes and smiles when he sees me. His red eyes are bright and warm and I've always loved the way they looked like a cozy fireplace.
—You back early. He says as I hug him with a big jump. He catches me in a hug and puts me down, patting me in the head, before going back to trimming.
—I finished my test early. My teacher is going nuts, trying to prove I'm cheating. He keeps staring at me all the time and doesn't seem to understand how I know the answers to his trick questions. If he knew I'd been answering the same boring stuff for fifty years, he would flip out. I play with his short blond hair. I remember touching it when I was only a baby. He would pretend that I was too strong for him to pull his head back and make me laugh.
—Then you should make a mistake now and then. Throw him off your scent. He smiles.
—It's more fun to see him going crazy. What's for dinner? I ask him.
—Ask your mother. You know I have no idea what she'll make.
I run back to the house, and mother is already in the kitchen. Her long hair was tied up in a ponytail and she looks ready to start cooking.
—What's for dinner? I ask, grabbing a cracker from the counter.
—What about… roasted potatoes? Maybe some beef stew too? She's cutting the ingredients already. The amount is small since I'm the only person in the house that eats food.
My parents don't talk about it, but I know they feed on human blood when I'm sleeping. They also have an emergency stash my dad got from a hospital. I asked them how they feed, but they firmly refused to talk about it.
—Sounds amazing. I say, watching her back, smiling.
—And after dinner, we need to talk. Her words sound the alarm in my head. I know that tone. We've been living here for a while now, and I can tell time is running out again.
—Sure. I answer, pretending to be unbothered. I have a perfect poker face like my dad, but I need to work on my voice. My mom can always tell when I'm nervous or lying. —But I have homework so we'll talk after, ok? I have to walk Toby. I can feel her eyes following me as I run outside with the dog on my heels.
Toby is a six-year-old Scottish Deerhound and the laziest dog in the world. He would prefer to lay down all day, so I sometimes have to drag him outside the house for his walk. Our home is isolated from others for obvious reasons, so we have the forest all for ourselves. Even if I were to scream, no one would hear me, at least, no human. We walk around until Toby decides he's over it and I sit on the grass, petting his head on my lap.
—I know what she'll say. Toby is the only one I can talk to about the things that bother me about our lifestyle. —She'll say we need to move again. I don't know why they obey those stupid vampires. They don't consider me a human or a vampire. You know, the first time they saw me, they told my parents to get rid of me, like I was last week's pizza. I'm angry talking to Toby, but he just raises his head for a moment before going back to demanding pets.
—I know we should keep a secret, but… I'm tired. I can't live as a human because I don't age, and I can't live as a vampire because I don't drink blood, but I have powers, you know! It's not fair, Toby. He looks utterly oblivious to my problems, but I appreciate that he listens. Our walk was way too long today, and the sun was already going down, so we stood up and went back to the house.
Toby goes straight to his kennel, probably looking for his dinner. The lights in the house are off, but that's not that strange. Sometimes my mom forgets to turn them on when she's too concentrated on cooking.
—Mom! You forgot the lights again. I say, by the front door, looking at the darkroom. —Mom! I run to the second floor towards her room.
—Mom? Dad? A faint light is coming through their door, but they don't answer me.
I peek inside and freeze. Three people I've never seen before are inside with them. A tall woman with long black hair, a red-haired one, and a short-haired man. All with blood-red eyes, vampire's eyes.
I look for my parents. My dad's body is on the floor by the long-haired woman's feet and she's holding his head. The red-haired woman holds my mother by the neck, lifting her from the floor and when she sees me, the terror in her eyes makes me fall to the floor, unable to feel my legs. I can read the word "run" on her lips as the man pulls the door wide open, smiling at me. My instinct takes over. I stand up and run.
The man is still by the door, just smiling at me. I slip on something wet on the floor and fall in front of the stairs. The faint moonlight shone over the blood coming from Toby's dismembered body. I can feel the scream closing my throat, making me unable to breathe. I look up, and a tall man is staring at me, his hands still dripping red.
I stand up, run downstairs, and slip again on Toby's blood dripping from my legs and as roll down the stairs, and I can feel my shoulder dislocated when I hit the floor, but I don't stop. I walk out the door towards the garden, fighting to survive because this is who I am. This is my power. Every fiber in my body fights for life.
My body is pushed forward, and I land on the grass, cutting my face on the ground. I'm stressed enough now; I can do it. If I can grab one of them, I can steal their powers and memories. I can run away. It will only last a minute, but I can get as far as possible, heal my shoulder, and try to understand this nightmare.
A hand grabs me by my hair, making me lookup. I reach back, looking for his skin, but I touch the leather of his gloves. They know about me. They were ready for us. He twists my arm painfully to my back and takes a closer look at my face.
—Look at that. She does bleed! I can feel the sting on my cheek. —The smell is like a human's too. Mirania, you were right! Cinque, look at this freak!
—Cut it out, Raffaello. Let's go. The red-haired woman approaches us. Her eyes remind me of the man the Volturi sent. She also believes I'm less than trash.
The black-haired woman approaches us and drops something on the floor. The ball rolls around, getting closer to me—my mother's head.
—Why did you bring it here? The red-haired one asks.
—You told me to finish the mission, so I did. You're welcome. Her voice is calm, like she's just talking about the weather, not about my mother's head laying on her feet.
—Mom…mom… I repeat the word, not wanting to believe what's happening. I can still hear her voice in my head, calling my name. I reach my hands to touch her, but the man pulls my head back again.
—Grab her, Raffaello. We are out of here. And don't let her touch you. Ginanni, you burn the house down. She looks down at me, her red hair shining like her eyes.
I feel a blow to my head, strong enough to make me lose conscience. The last image I see is my mother's head, her eyes out of focus, dead, looking back at me. I'll kill them all. Is the final conscious thought in my head.
I can feel the darkness swallowing me and Mirania's voice inside my head. I'm back inside my mind, staring at her. Her lips move but don't make a sound as my mind is closing down, drowning in the pain and darkness, surrendering to the violence and vengeance. I push her to the limits of my mind, to a cliff. —You killed them, and now I've finally come for you. One more push and she's out of my mind. I shut off all the survival mechanisms. My body would do anything to keep me alive, so I got rid of those feelings. I'm killing Mirania for what she did, even if I have to die in the process. She'll regret leaving me alone in this world and lying to me. She'll wish to have killed me that day.
After Paul and Jasper are pushed inside the hole on the ground, Edward drags Esme, Jake, and Seth to keep moving forward.
—They'll kill her. Edward had a glimpse of the mind of the vampire that pushed them both. She looked much stronger than Dieci, and he was worried about Jasper, but he couldn't tell where he was. Besides, he knew Anne's time was up. They were killing her.
—What do you mean? Seth asks, running alongside him.
—I heard her thoughts. Anne is somewhere ahead, and whatever they'll do to her will kill her for sure.
—Who are they? What are they doing to her? Esme asks, terrified.
They keep running until the corridor suddenly splits in two. They look to both paths, unable to hear anything coming from it.
—I don't know which way to go. Edward says, still trying to hear something, a clue, anything. —We need to split up.
—I don't think it's a good idea. They've been trying to separate us since the beginning. We'll just do what they want. Jake says.
—We have no other choice. Seth is impatient. —Anne is at the end of one of these corridors, and we are out of time
—Then how do we choose? Who's going which way? Jake asks.
—I should go with you, Esme. Edward promised Carlislehe would take care of her.
—No. You go with Seth; I'll go with Jake. She says. —Whoever finds her first takes her out of here. She is looking at Seth. He's the only one who understands her feelings right now and although their connection to her is different, they love her just the same. She can trust him to bring her back home.
—All right. Jake agrees. —Be careful, Seth. You too, Edward.
—Same to you. Edward says.
—So, we flip a coin? Jake asks, looking at the corridors. He wishes Seth didn't have to see whatever they were doing to the girl or face the person behind this.
—We'll go left, you go right. Esme says.
—Ok. See you outside. Seth says, looking at them before running with Edward to the right side. Now, destiny will decide. Who's going to reach Anne first? Is it too late to save her?
Esme and Jake run through the left corridor until they can't hear Seth or Edward anymore. They soon reach a door similar to the one encountered upon entering this underground maze. It opens automatically when they get close enough, revealing a room like the one they left Emmet and Embry in.
They walk inside cautiously.
A man is lying on his side on the floor, eyes closed, his hand supporting his head up like he's watching his garden from his porch. He opens one eye when they enter the room.
—Hum? His lazy voice echoed. He sits up, legs crossed. —I was waiting for the mind reader. He scratches his head and neck. He couldn't be less interested in them.
—Sorry to disappoint you, but you're not whom we were expecting to see either. Esme says, keeping her eyes on him. He looks uninterested, and she can't feel hostility from him, but she won't be caught by surprise.
—I just miss sleeping, you know. Since I turned, I can't fall asleep anymore. I just want to take a nap and wake up having no idea where I am. He looks to the floor, his eyes out of focus. —I miss food too. And beer. God, I miss beer. I just drank with my friends until I dropped to the floor, and they thought I was dead. He laughs, remembering his time as a human. Esme and Jake exchange confused looks listening to his random words.
—Maybe his power is talking us to death. Jake is losing his patience at the vampire's disregard for them. The man doesn't stop.
—Nobody tells me anything around here. I'm bored out of my mind. They keep giving me orders. Sette, go collect materials. Sette, don't kill too many humans. Sette, get rid of the intruders, blah blah blah. Who cares? I thought I could have my fun with the mid reader, but I'm stuck with a dog and a woman.
—What's his problem? Esme whispers to Jake. The man keeps talking gibberish, making her confused.
—I don't know, but we can't keep delaying things here. Jake says, both of them keeping their eyes on him.
The room shakes suddenly with a deep sound and Sette opens a broad smile, looking around the room. —Cinque is pissed.
—It's Sette, right? What happened right now? Who's Cinque? Esme asks.
He just smiles at her and goes back to his talkative self. —You wanna know how I got this? He points to a long scar from his right eyebrow, running down across his eye and down to his cheek. Sette is a slender but visibly muscular man. He's still sitting down, but Esme can tell he is tall. He dresses like a cowboy out of a time machine.
—Who cares about your battle scars? Jake snarls. He is fed up with Sette looking down on them.
—If you have no intention of fighting us, then let us go. Esme says calmly —There is someone important to me that we need to find. Her voice is much more tender than Sette deserves.
He looks at her, serious. His face is young, but his skin has a light translucent color. He is old and dangerous, and Esme knows the fact he's relaxed is not out of disregard for his opponents but because they are in very different strength levels.
—You remind me of my mother. He finally speaks, smiling again. —She also was too good for the life destiny dealt her.
The floor shakes again. And one more time.
—Let us through. Esme says, impatient. She has a bad feeling about these tremors.
—I can't. Please don't make me stand up. Sette lays down again, back to his original position.
—We can't stay here and do nothing. Jake is much more impatient than Esme. He's worried about Embry, Paul, and Seth especially.
—Are you buying time then? Esme can't understand his goal here. Sette won't attack like he was ordered to but won't let them just move along either. He certainly looks strong enough to fight them, but maybe they can get to an agreement.
—I'm not buying time; I'm simply not interested. Sette won't stand up or look at them.
—Then let us through, damn it! Jake is at the limit.
—No. He answers, serious. His red eyes challenge Jake.
—Then we'll kill you. Jake transforms and attacks Sette. The vampire stands up, rolling his eyes, annoyed.
He avoids Jake like he's simply walking around the room. He has his arms back, looking distracted. Esme has her eyes on him, waiting for an opening, but every time she thinks he's distracted enough for her to join the fight, his eyes meet hers, warning her to stay back.
Jake has no chance against him alone, probably not even if Esme joins the fight herself. He's vastly older than her and more experienced than Jake will ever be.
The room shakes again, this time much stronger. The tremors are coming one after the other now, like a hammer hitting a nail in a perfect rhythm.
Sette and Jake stop their fight. The vampire massages his neck, looking up like he's listening. —Well, this is my cue. You guys are lucky. He says, walking to a corner in the room. —Give my best to the mind reader. Tell him I'll make sure to meet him someday. He jumps inside an opening on the floor, disappearing. Jake returns to his human form, staring at where he was, arms in the air.
—What the hell was that?
—I'm not sure. Esme wants to say it was luck, but she doesn't want to hear Jacob say he could've killed Sette when they clearly didn't stand a chance. —Let's go.
They turn around, looking for the door they're entered through so they can go back and turn right as Seth and Edward did. They most definitely are with Anne now. The thing is, the door is gone. They look around, to the door across the room instead. If they can't go back, moving forward is the only way out.
Behind the door, another narrow corridor, just like the others, extends as far as the eye can see.
—This place makes no sense. Jake says, looking a an exit. The room shakes again.
—We need to move. Esme jumps inside the corridor, Jake follows right after her. They run until they reach another door. They have to push it open this time.
The sun lights blind them for a moment, reflecting on Esme's skin. Somehow they are outside, right in front of the presidential state. The building they entered is now miles away.
—Esmeeeee! Jaaaake! They turn around, and Renesmee is running towards them, arm waving in the air. She jumps to hug Esme and right behind her are Carlisle, Alice, Rosalie, and Bella. Embry, Jasper, Emmett, and Paul also join them.
Carlisle hugs Esme too, relieved to see she's okay.
—What are you guys doing here? Esme asks, confused.
—Alice saw this place sinking to the ground after talking to Edward on the plane. Carlisle explains. —She saw all of you fighting too, so we jumped on a plane and came here right away. Sam and the others are watching the city.
—Where's my dad? Renesmee asks, now holding onto Jake.
—He's still inside. He got separated when the corridor was divided in two. He probably met Anne by now. Esme tries to keep an optimistic tone for the sake of Renesmee and herself.
—Should we go in? Bella asks, holding her daughter's hand.
—I wouldn't do it if I were you. Jasper says, Alice, holding onto him. —That place is a maze. We'll probably get lost before finding him.
The grounds continue to shake.
—They are covering their tracks. The building is going down. All look back at the facility after listening to Alice's words. The old building waves slightly before collapsing to the ground, becoming a pile of wreckage.
The ground shakes more intensely than ever now. They can feel the earth moving under their feet and step back, closer to the old house. The gound elevates slightly before sinking to a shallow hole. The house starts to crack too, the walls falling and lifting dust in the air.
They all look in silence. That looks like the center of the structure, so Edward and the others must come through here to get out. They hold their breaths every time a wall falls, praying to see them emerge from the dust.