Hello to my favourite internet people, it is I! So here's finally an update. Thank you for being patient (not that you had much choice). More importantly, thank you for your kind words and encouragement. I apologise in advance if this chapter has many errors, I was extremely tired when I wrote this and I don't have time to fix any possible mistakes. Anywho, I won't waste more time with blabber, that is for the end notes!
18. Expect the Unexpected
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Recap:
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She fell to the ground harshly, wincing in pain. This was not her day. She stubbornly tried to fight the incoming tears but without much success. It wasn't enough that her heart was shattered in pieces but now she had to deal with another trip to the past?
"Well well, we meet again! Why so blue?" Bella looked up in surprise at the familiar voice.
"You!"
"Me!"
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Bella's POV
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"Am I cursed by some cosmic fate?" Bella muttered under her breath as she stared up at the grinning face of the vampire. James hadn't changed one bit, not that she expected him to. He still wore that same smug smile and held himself in an annoyingly carefree manner. Or at least Bella found it annoying.
"How are you dear time traveler?" James asked cheerfully. "I admit that I thought your tale was far-fetched and perhaps the atmosphere of the camps had turned you into a loon but all the things you said have turned out to be true," he paused. "And there's the fact that you literally appeared out of thin air right in front of me,"
"Great," Bella deadpanned, and with great difficulty, stood up. She rocked dangerously on the spot but James quickly grabbed ahold of her arm to steady her. While she was thankful for the assistance, his touch made her extremely uncomfortable. After all, he was still a Nazi Vampire to her. "Where's your…companion?"
"Oh she went off to get a snack," James smirked and Bella couldn't help but to shudder. She was pretty sure what that meant.
"Where are we?" Bella decided to ignore the fact that Victoria was probably murdering someone in cold blood in that moment. They were standing in the middle of a dirt-road and the sun was almost blinding. She winced as it did nothing to help her throbbing head. The surroundings were unfamiliar and while there were signs of civilisation, it was far cry from Forks. They were clearly standing on an outskirt of a town or a village, but other than that, Bella had no idea. She highly doubted she was in North-America, the air was too humid and the sun too hot.
"You're just full of questions aren't you?" James asked rhetorically. "How about you answer some of mine,"
"Quid pro quo," Bella replied without skipping a beat.
"Latin, well aren't we fancy?" James whistled lowly. "You're awfully confident for someone standing in the presence of an apex predator," Bella merely shrugged. He was right after all. A normal person would be terrified standing in front of a human-drinking vampire but Bella was far from normal. She was also pretty sure she was disassociating from reality and her body hadn't grasped onto the real danger she was in. Her mind was still somewhat occupied by what had happened earlier.
"You have yourself a deal traveler," the vampire smiled, obviously entertained with her nonchalant attitude. "We are currently in Rwanda!" James spread his arms as if he was making some grand introduction.
"In Africa?" Bella's eyes bulged out. It explained the temperature and the blinding sun at least.
"Correct!" James gave her a mocking smile.
"What year?" It was a standard procedure by now to figure out when after where. The detail could end up saving her life. Bella furiously wracked her brain for her limited knowledge on African history. There was something about Rwanda that she was forgetting.
"Enough of that," the vampire waved dismissively. "I answered your question, now you have to answer mine,"
"Fine," Bella sighed. "Fire away,"
"How does your power work?" James perked up with childlike glee.
"No idea dude," the time traveler shrugged helplessly. "I just disappear from my time and appear in random places. I have no control," the left out the fact that it always seemed to happen under emotionally stressful moments. He didn't have to know that.
"Fascinating," James murmured. "Why aren't you afraid of me?"
"It's my turn," Bella shot back. "What year is this?" Instead of being angry by the refusal, he seemed amused.
"1994," he shrugged. "20th of April to be exact," Bella stilled. That year sounded significant. What was she forgetting about?
"Now answer mine. Why aren't you afraid of me?" James insisted.
"There are worse things in life than vampires," Bella answered honestly.
"I see," James looked as if he was fighting the urge to pout.
Bella rolled her eyes and shifted her focus to her environment. She had no idea why she was here, but experience had taught her that something terrible was about to take place, if it hadn't happened already. She was by no means equipped to deal with another trauma. Why couldn't she ever travel to Disney Land? Or maybe a tropical beach? Her mind drifted to the moment just before she travelled. Rosalie's tearful eyes, the desperation in her tone, the awful realisation that forever wasn't an option for them. Why was she never enough? René didn't want her, she only ever disappointed her father, she was always worrying her friends and the Cullen's were constantly dealing with her shit. Why was she always such a fuck up? Maybe she had been better off without knowing what happiness tasted like. The saddest thing about it all was that she had finally, after many sessions with Jasper, accepted that love was a real thing. She had been in the company of mated vampires for long enough to see that the love between them was authentic. She even believed at one point that she was Rosalie's mate. Maybe a small part of her still did. After all, why would vampires go through all that effort to convince a human that she belongs with them if that wasn't the case? That made no sense. Even if she thought they were bored after centuries of bland existence, they weren't the types to emotionally torture humans in a manipulated way. The whole thing was confusing and Bella didn't know what to think of it. Whatever the reasoning was, it didn't take away the pain that Rosalie didn't want a forever with her. That was a bitter pill to swallow. Maybe she had grown too dependent on Rosalie and the Cullen's. She had always been self-reliant. Technically she didn't need anyone. Even though she wanted nothing more than to spend eternity at the blonde's side, she was more than capable to be on her own. Bella rubbed her eyes tiredly. That last bit was a blatant lie. She needed Rosalie more than she cared to admit and that fact stung. She was stupidly in love with the blonde vampire goddess. She wanted to scream in frustration, or cry, whichever came first.
"Why do you look like you just swallowed a lemon?" James' voice interrupted her inner monologue.
"None of your fucking business Adolf Wannabe," Bella snapped back, irritated to be stuck with his presence.
"Relax," James held his hand up in surrender, an infuriating smirk tugging his lips. "No need to pull up the melodramatic teenager act with me,"
"Fuck you," Bella told him tonelessly.
"So sensitive," James teased, obviously having a great time with pushing her buttons.
"Why are you here?" the time traveler demanded. "Is there a Nazi reunion happening or something?"
"I was never a Nazi," James informed her with an amused smile. "Merely a fan,"
"Because that's so much better," Bella muttered under her breath.
"I'm here for the show," James ignored her comment.
"Coming from you that sounds ominous," Bella deadpanned.
"I'll take that as a compliment!" James seemed unordinary pleased about that.
"It wasn't intended as one,"
"Come with me," not that Bella had any choice, since the vampire grabbed ahold of her arm and began dragging her along. The first thing she noticed that it was eerily quiet for a town. The second thing was the god awful smell, and the fact that there was something familiar about it. It was the same thing she had smelled in ancient Rome and at Treblinka. Realisation came crashing down when they encountered the first body. Bella swallowed thickly as she stared at the severed head, resting in a pool of blood next to its torso.
"Jesus Christ," she murmured faintly, but James kept walking and gave her no time to adjust. They entered a town square, and this time Bella couldn't help but to throw up. James rolled his eyes and stared at her impatiently as she emptied her breakfast. When Bella thought she was finally done, she looked up at the carnage and threw up again. There were dead bodies everywhere, and the streets were decorated with blood and severed limbs.
"Beautiful, isn't it?" James stared at the scene with a faint smile. "This has been going on for days!" he added giddily. Bella opened her mouth to ask but then she was hit with a memory from her History Class. Rwanda. 1994. Genocide.
"Fuck," was the only thing that could sum up her situation.
"James," Victoria appeared out of nowhere, only sparing Bella a bland look, before focusing on her mate. "They are on their way,"
"Excellent!" James rubbed his hands together with a huge smile. "You can stay for the show then," he told Bella, who was busy panicking. This was not happening. How was she here?
"The church then?" Victoria asked sweetly.
"Yes," James nodded. "Come now traveler, let's join the others," before Bella could protest, he took her arm and started walking.
"Others?" Bella stumbled over a dead body, a girl no older than ten. She cringed, her heart breaking for the young child's fate but before she could mourn, she was pulled away.
"The remaining Tutsi in this town," James answered happily. "Although they won't remain for much longer," he laughed and winked at Victoria, who seemed faintly amused with his antics. Bella hated them both.
"How are you not in a blood frenzy?" the time traveler couldn't help but to wonder. They were too calm for human drinking vampires in this bloody environment.
"A lot of practice!" James informed her smugly. "You have to master your own weakness to be able to play the game well," Bella rolled his eyes at the ambiguous answer. She decided not to ask further questions, she had wasted enough on this madman.
"You knock Tori," James ordered as they came to a stop in front of an old, weathered church. Victoria wasted no time and knocked a few times. There was silence for a few seconds, until the door opened slowly and a man stuck his head out, suspicion clear in his eyes. His eyes widened as he took in their appearance, obviously bewildered by their unlikely presence. He was probably expecting locals, not a grinning blonde, an aloof red hair and an apprehensive brunette. He said something in an unfamiliar language and to Bella's great surprise, Victoria responded in same, although with a much harsher accent. The man eyed them for a long moment before he finally gave them a nod and moved away to let them inside. James shot him a blinding smile, dragging an unwilling Bella behind him.
"That was easy!" he commented to Victoria, who gave him a smug smile. Bella decided to ignore the duo and focused on the other occupants in the room. Her heart dropped. The church was filled with families, all looking beyond exhausted and terrified. Small children were crying while their parents did their best to calm them down, although Bella suspected with empty promises and false hope. After all they were completely powerless in this situation. She remembered reading a bit on the Rwanda genocide, although not as much as she probably should have, but what she read was purely devastating.
"We should do something," she murmured under her breath. She couldn't let all those people die. She couldn't have a repeat of Treblinka.
"And what on earth are you going to do?" James spoke up, startling Bella from her thoughts. She hadn't realised she had spoken out loud.
"Warn them? Lead them away? I don't know. Maybe you can kill those who are about to attack? Protect these people?" Bella suggested desperately, grasping at straws.
"Why on earth would I do that?" James sounded baffled at the notion.
"To show some human decency?" Bella snapped back. "To prevent the murders of innocents? There are children in here! Families that will be slaughtered! They have done nothing to earn this treatment. Do you now care at all?"
"Nope," James shrugged. Bella bit her tongue, wondering why she wasn't even bothering with him. She turned towards Victoria.
"No," the red-haired woman said before Bella could even ask. "Now shut up, they are here,"
"Great!" James roughly grabbed Bella's arm and pulled her to an alcove at the far end. He pushed her behind him, as if shielding her from an incoming attack.
"What the fuck?"
"Shut up," Victoria ordered as she took her place next to her. Bella strained her ears but only could only hear muffled conversation around them and faint cries from the children. Then she heard it. A vehicle turning up, and someone shouting in a foreign language outside. Everyone inside froze and the children began to cry earnestly while the adults made desperate attempts to shush them. A whole minute passed in tense anticipation until a thud sounded from above. Bella, along with almost everyone else, glanced up in realisation. They were on the roof. The time traveler frantically tried to break free of Victoria's hold but she was too strong. The vampire didn't even budge.
"You have to do something– " Bella's words were swallowed by the first spray of bullets. She flinched hard as screams filled the room. Victoria pressed her further into the wall under the alcove, where they were miraculously saved from being hit. Bella knew then that their placement was strategic, the vampires had known what was about to happen.
"Be still," Victoria hissed in her ear. Bella flinched as the bullets kept pelting down from the ceiling, like unforgiving rain. Victoria's grip was tight and left Bella rooted on the spot while James' eyes kept flickering from the scene to Bella's face, the biggest smile on his face. Bella had never hated anyone as much as she hated him in that moment. He was enjoying this, the bastard. Victoria's face was at least indifferent. Although Bella wasn't sure if that was any better. Both deserved to burn in hell.
"Listen!" James shouted gleefully, a sadistic glint in his eyes. Bella wanted nothing more but to cover her ears. The sound was the worst part, the screams mixing in with the loud gun fire. Finally, after what seemed like hours but was in fact only a few seconds, the gunfire ceased. Someone shouted outside and the doors were torn open. A group of soldiers marched inside, eying their handiwork before promptly leaving. Somehow Bella and the two vampires remained hidden. A few minutes later the vehicle drove away. As soon as it was clear they were gone, Victoria released Bella, who almost fell flat on her face.
"Isn't this exciting?" James exclaimed, surveying the area with a giddy expression.
"You sick fuck!" Bella screamed at him, tears rushing down her cheeks. "What the hell is wrong with you two?" Everyone was dead. There was so much blood that Bella almost threw up again. Men, women, children, no one was spared.
"So emotional," James sounded disappointed. "One would think a time traveler would have a thicker skin," he added to Victoria, who shrugged in disinterest. "Death is a beautiful part of life Bella, the sooner you accept that, the sooner you'll be free from your shackles of humanity,"
"There is nothing beautiful about murder!" Bella snapped back. "Let alone a fucking genocide,"
"Sure there is!" James closed his eyes and inhaled deeply. Bella only stared at the vampire in disbelief. This had to be the most fucked up vampire in history.
"Is this your thing?" the words were out of out of her mouth before she could rethink them. "You just follow genocide wherever you go?" she remembered his intrigued expression at the Nazi Camp. "This shit gets you off?" she did nothing to disguise the disgust in her voice.
"No," James opened his eyes and red met brown. "This is merely research,"
"…research," Bella echoed dimly. She had no idea how to process that information.
"Yes," he nodded with a secretive smile, as if he was about to reveal something wonderful. "I'm a tracker," Bella just gave him a blank stare. "That means I live for the hunt," he walked towards a decapitated body of a young man, crouching down to poke his body experimentally with a thoughtful expression. Bella cringed at the visual and looked away. "I track humans and hunt them. However the game has become somewhat repetitive throughout the years so whenever opportunity arises, I seek inspiration,"
"…inspiration," the time traveler muttered. James was the epitome of evil, that much she was sure of.
"Humans have an affinity to kill one another. As much as I hate your kind, I can't help but to admire your hard work," James gestured towards the endless bodies in front of the church.
"Just kill me already. If only to spare me from your lecture," Bella was more than done with James and Victoria. She could not reason with them so what was the point?
"So dramatic," Victoria rolled her eyes. "Just kill the girl and be over with it,"
"Not yet my dove," James told Victoria, who turned almost bashful under his loving gaze, much to Bella's disgust. "She needs to play the game," the game? Bella shifted nervously.
"Very well," Victoria agreed. "You need to hurry though, I doubt we'll be alone for much longer,"
"Excellent point," James smiled. "You heard the lady," he turned to Bella. "So like I told you earlier, I'm a tracker. The game is very simple," his eyes gleamed with delight. "You are my prey,"
"That's just perfect," Bella spat out. "Because these days the world only ever expects me to bend over,"
"Cease your mindless blabber," Victoria seized her arm. "No one cares about your woes,"
"Come now traveler. Don't you want to play?" James' eyes sparked with excitement. "Victoria, let go of her," the red-haired woman let go of Bella immediately. "Ready?"
"No,"
"Go!" James barked. "You get a few minutes of head start. Run!" Even though it was fruitless, and she would undoubtably be captured right away, Bella's instinct took over and she started running. James' hysterical laughter almost made her want turn back to punch him in the face, even though she would break her hand in the process. How the fuck was she supposed to get out of this one?
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Rosalie's POV
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She stared at the sunset with a blank expression, barely taking in the breathtaking view. She had been sitting in that tree for almost two days and she knew her family was worried, but she couldn't bear to face them yet. The memory of Bella's last words kept running through her mind like an endless loop.
"Or maybe I'm just misreading this whole situation and you actually don't want to spend forever with me?" Rosalie wanted nothing more but to spend eternity by Bella's side. "Of course I'm fucking thinking about you! I'm always thinking about you," Rosalie closed her eyes, her beautiful features twisted into a grimace "In hindsight I suppose I should have expected it," In hindsight Rosalie should have known Bella would misinterpret her words and jump to conclusions. Although to be fair, Rosalie hadn't done a very good job at explaining herself. Of course Bella would expect to be turned into a vampire one day, it's only a logical assumption. In fact Rosalie knew her family thought the same thing, even Edward. She was the only one who had been against it. "Let me go Rose," the memory of the pain she had detected in those whispered words were enough to send her off again into blind rage. She grabbed the branch next to hers and ripped it violently off the tree and threw it as far as she could. "Let me go Rose," that was the last thing she wanted. She only ever wanted Bella close. "Or maybe I'm just misreading this whole situation and you actually don't want to spend forever with me?" Rosalie let out a small growl. Why was she always such a self-destructive idiot? How could she deny the love of her life?
"Do you want company?" Jasper's voice cut into her self-loathing inner monologue.
"If you're here to lecture me, I'm not interested," Rosalie murmured in a defeated voice.
"That was not my intention," her brother replied softly. There was a brief pause, before he jumped up and sat down on the branch next to her.
"Maybe you should," Rosalie sighed. "After all, I'm the idiot who broke my mate's heart because I can't seem to get over my issues," a long silence stretched between them.
"There's still time," Jasper stated calmly. Rosalie gave him a sardonic glance.
"For all we know, she could be dead by now," she told him hollowly.
"I find that highly unlikely," the ex-soldier commented. "Bella is unlucky, but she knows how to handle herself,"
"It probably didn't help that she was distraught when she traveled. Maybe she'll be too distracted – "
"Give her some credit," Jasper cut in sternly. "Yes she might be in an emotional state, but that seems to be a consistent pattern with her travels. She's always in some turmoil but still always survives,"
"You're right," Rosalie murmured in a contrite tone. "I'm just worried,"
"So am I," Jasper admitted freely. "However, there's nothing we can do but wait," Rosalie nodded, reluctantly reassured by his words. It did nothing to quell the guilt about their exchange before Bella left, but it helped her to refocus. There was always one thing she could do while she waited and the perfect person to help her was sitting next to her.
"You feel guilty," Jasper studied her intently. "Yet there is a newfound purpose in you,"
"Will you help me?" Rosalie blurted out.
"With what?" Jasper asked kindly. He probably knew what she was asking for, still he needed her to say it. Rosalie steeled herself and exhaled shakily.
"To help me get over my issues,"
"It will take time," Jasper pointed out patiently.
"I know," she swallowed. "Luckily I have plenty of that,"
"Very well," Jasper gave her a small smile, which she automatically mirrored. "Let me go Rose," Not without a fight.
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Bella's POV
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"How disappointing," James lamented as he caught Bella for the fifth time. "I had such high hopes for you but all your attempts are so…unimaginative,"
They had chased her through three small villages already and Bella was beyond exhausted. She had tried every trick she could think of but intellectually she knew there was nothing she could do. They were stronger and faster than her in every sense. The only escape she could think of, was to travel back to her own time. So for the last two hours, she had been thinking of Forks while she ran, but to no avail. In her defence, it was hard to concentrate while being chased by two psychotic vampires through bloody streets littered with dead bodies. Even if she could ignore those two factors, thinking about Forks only made her think about her last conversation with Rosalie, which made her heart ache with sorrow and bitterness. At this rate she doubted she would ever get home.
"She's nothing special," Victoria added her two cents, ignoring the glare Bella gave her.
"I suppose," James sighed.
"We can always torture her?" Victoria suggested, eyeing her forlorn mate.
"What the hell is the matter with you people?" Bella asked for what seemed like the tenth time.
"Excellent suggestion my love!" James perked up and before Bella could begin to protest, she was yanked violently towards him. "I think I'll start with your hands, after all you still need legs to run," All blood drained from Bella's face.
"Someone's coming," Victoria announced suddenly. "Someone dangerous,"
"Relax Tori," James made a dismissive gesture. "You're too paranoid,"
"Well that has kept us alive so far, hasn't it?" it was the first time Bella had ever seen Victoria snap at James.
"Hearding!" a voice Bella hadn't heard in ages called out. She blinked in surprise and turned around in James arms. A familiar vampire was walking calmly towards them, with two other vampires a step behind him. "What a delightful surprise!" Bella stared at him incredulously. He was still just as beautiful, with lean figure, pale skin and fair blonde hair. The only thing that was different about him was that he no longer carried a sword.
"You?" she gaped.
"Indeed," the vampire smirked. "I recall meeting you in the 8th century," he tilted his head curiously. "Which pegs the question, how are you here? You are not a vampire, nor a werewolf,"
"She's a time traveler," James answered before Bella could.
"How fascinating," the man's gleaming red eyes sparkled at the information.
"Who are you?" Victoria eyed the newcomers suspiciously, shifting slightly towards her mate. James seemed oddly at ease with the situation, although that didn't surprise Bella. James was so unhinged that she doubted anything worried him.
"I am Caius," the vampire paused dramatically. "Volturi," Bella didn't react to the name, but James and Victoria sure did. For the first time ever, Bella noticed hesitation in James expression. "These are my royal guards, Demetri and Felix" he gestured towards his companions, who remained expressionless.
"Your highness," Victoria greeted tightly. Bella only just managed to not roll her eyes. Vampire royalty? Just her luck.
"Not to be rude, but what are you doing here?" the time traveler wondered out loud. Victoria shot her a glare in warning but she paid it no mind. Caius did not smile but his eyes betrayed his mirth.
"I had forgotten your…spunk," he began pleasantly. "It is rare that a human fails to cower in front of a vampire, let alone steal their sword,"
"I didn't steal it. I only borrowed it," Bella shot back.
"Did you return it?" Caius raised one eyebrow.
"Touché," Bella said with a sheepish expression, which only served to amuse him further.
"I am here because I heard rumors of a werewolf in Tanzania," red eyes darkened and amusement was replaced with anger. Bella swallowed at the abrupt shift, realising she was dealing with a different breed of vampire. James was probably a kitten compared to Caius. "I was merely passing through, when I noticed a scent I haven't smelled in more than a millennia," he gestured towards Bella.
"I am honoured," Bella stated flatly, inwardly cursing her lack of filter. Why did she always have to be such a smart ass in dangerous situations? If Jasper were here he'd probably call it a defence mechanism. Bella mentally shook her head. This was not the time to think about the Cullen's.
"As you should," luckily Caius only found her amusing. "I do however wonder why you are in the company of vampires?"
"Rotten luck," the time traveler forced out. "Definitely not by choice. They practically dragged me here to witness genocide,"
"Humanity is so odd," the ancient vampire eyed the scene with thinly veiled disgust. "There is no glory in this death," he sighed heavily.
"No glory?" James snorted. "Death is death,"
"What a primitive way of thinking," Caius raised one eyebrow, and despite the tense situation, Bella fought the urge to smirk at James' annoyed expression.
"That's a fairly accurate description of his character," she couldn't help but to snark, still bitter about James' earlier manhandle and his promises of torture. Not to mention his plans to kill her. Caius shot her an amused smirk.
"This human is not fond of you," Caius informed James, who snorted.
"I can always kill her," James gave Bella a blood-thirsty smile. "That was the plan anyway,"
"Ah, we can't have that," Caius tutted softly. Both James and Victoria gave him disbelieving looks. "I'm afraid I have my own plans regarding our little time traveler," Bella sighed. Out of the frying pan and into the fire.
"Brilliant," she deadpanned, wondering if this nightmare would ever end. Being killed by Nazi tourist vampires was bad enough, but being whisked away by vampire royalty for unknown reasons sounded like the worse option.
"I'm glad you agree," Caius remarked pleasantly. "Now, let's be on our way," he nodded to his guards, who moved to block the road ahead. As if she could escape anyway. "In fact I know two vampires who would love to meet you," there was a knowing glint in his eyes, as if he was in on a joke that the rest of them were not privy to. James sighed heavily, but let go of Bella, who quickly moved away from him.
"Now before we go, what to do with you two?" the ancient vampire mused to himself, staring at Victoria and James.
"We'll leave the country," Victoria insisted. "There's no need for more bloodshed," she sounded nervous, much to Bella's pleasure. It was only fair she wasn't the only one who was nervous in this scenario.
"That's one solution," Caius agreed pleasantly, as if discussing the weather. "What do you think?" he suddenly turned to Bella.
"What?" she frowned. Was he really asking her opinion?
"What do you think I should do with them?" Caius asked. "I think it would be entirely appropriate that you should decide their fate, after all - they decided yours before I intervened," Victoria blinked in surprise while James maintained his aloof expression, even going as far to shoot her a smirk. It was clear he did not believe her capable of doing anything but suggest to Caius to let them go. He was still probably thinking about the small lecture on human decency and her stance on murder. Bella however was thinking about his sadistic smile as he watched children being butchered, and Victoria's emotionless mask as one of the women they encountered in in the second village begged for mercy. If anything, Bella would be doing the world a favour.
"Kill them," her voice did not waver as she glared at the couple, ignoring Caius pleased smirk.
"What?" James dropped his smile.
"You deserve to die," Bella informed him tonelessly. Victoria let out an anguished cry.
"Very well," Caius inclined his head.
"Wait – " James' words were cut off abruptly as Caius moved at terrifying speed. Bella hadn't even blinked before James' head was pulled off his body. She stared at ancient vampire in disbelief.
"Burn him," Caius ordered his guard. "And kill her," he pointed at Victoria, who was thrashing in one of the guard's holds. "Come my dear," he offered one arm for Bella to take, like the perfect gentleman. Bella swallowed thickly and hesitantly latched on.
"Where are we going?" she asked apprehensively, trying to ignore Victoria's furious wails in the background.
"Italy," Caius answered calmly. "But first, werewolf hunting," his sharp smile was bloodthirsty.
"Great," Bella stuttered, feeling more alarmed by his smile than what had occurred a minute earlier.
"I think you will enjoy yourself," Caius informed her pleasantly. "I know I will. I haven't torn apart a werewolf in decades. This will be fun,"
"I'm happy for you," she said tonelessly. She had escaped death for the time being, but her situation was undoubtably more dire than before. At least James promised to kill her. Who knew what Caius intended to do? Bella was positive that werewolf hunting was not as fun as he made it sound like.
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To be continued...
Damn, so that happened. Surprise? Some of you guessed correctly, so kudos to you. Although none of you guessed the place or the date. Like with the chapter on WWII, I had trouble writing this one. Out of respect I decided to not be too graphic, and I won't apologise for that. I think I managed to capture the atmosphere well enough. I could have gone further but ultimately decided against it.
To sum things up: Bella is pretty much fucked and Rosalie is finally about to challenge her stance on vampirism. Also, Caius is there! Anyone surprised to see him? I'm curious what you guys think about this chapter.
Again, thank you for all the wonderful comments, they lightened my heavy heart. Since honesty is a policy, I'll readily admit that I'm greedy and I hope for more. Full disclosure, you guys definitely help to keep this story alive.
I hope you're all staying safe.