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CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
(BPOV)
The room was silent and cold throughout the night. There was no further visits from Aro's guard and the overwhelming silence felt suffocating for me at times. I searched the walls, high and low, looking for any way to escape this hell.
There was nothing.
No escape seen.
I huddled in the corner, staying there as the hours ticked by. When morning dawned, I cringed as I heard the approaching footsteps and the keys jingle in the lock. I pushed myself further into the wall, feeling my heart lurch into my throat when the door opened and Jane stepped through, her eyes wide with vivid crimson color. I wanted to scream while she approached me. Her fiery gaze looming over me with thirst behind it.
"Bella." She chimed, gesturing to my position on the floor. "Was the king bed not fitting for you?"
I simply shook my head to her, keeping silent.
"Hmm... too bad. Have you slept at all?"
"Of course not." I whispered, feeling her take a forceful hold on my arm, hauling me to my feet.
"Shame, Aro expects you prompt, dressed and well rested this morning. There is much to discuss you know. I have placed your new attire in the next room. You are to dress in a hurry. You'll need to change out of this plain outfit. There is an expected class to be held here in Volterra."
I rolled my eyes as she hurried me into the next room and gestured to the pile of clothing on the bed there.
"Dress." She then demanded, turning on her heel and slamming the door behind her.
I grimaced as I touched the clothing, seeing the black lace dress and slipping it over my head. It left nothing to the imagination, as form fitting as it was and with a slit that ran clear up to my thigh. I felt the emotion grip me again when I glanced in the full length mirror and gasped at my reflection. My eyes were dead again... hallow and empty... like they had been for months at a time when Edward had first left.
Jane was back before I had time to zip up the back of the dress and when her cold fingers grazed my skin to do so, I couldn't help but shutter violently. Jane chuckled in response, her hands suddenly tangling in my hair, as she roughly began to brush through the tangles.
"You need to be presentable." She sighed. "It is something you will quickly learn here."
When I didn't respond, she pulled harshly on my thick locks, causing me to cry out in pain.
"Show some respect." She then demanded.
My eyes stung with tears when she began to paint my lips in a rich shade of red, her eyes wide with delight now.
"There, you look better. Aro's favorite color is red and it suits you."
I shuddered away from her as she gestured toward the door.
"No." I gasped, shaking my head.
"We must go now. Aro is not a patient man, Bella and we have kept him waiting long enough."
She forced me out of the room then and down the many dark hallways, leading us back to the throne room.
I could hear my heart hammering loudly in my ears as we went, Jane's iron grip on my arm truly painful while she hauled me along beside her.
"There are many advantages to this life. You should feel delight that Aro has such interest in you. I find you plain and ordinary, but Aro see's something else."
I sucked in a sharp breath when the double doors came in to view just ahead of us, my chest tight and my body trembling.
Crimson eyes met mine as soon as we entered the room. Aro's wide gaze on the dress instantly. He donned an approving smile and turned toward Demetri then.
"Lovely... isn't she?"
"Yes." Demetri replied. "Exquisite."
I couldn't look at either of them as they exchanged glances of approval.
Suddenly and without warning, Jane released me and a different set of cold hands took hold of my arms.
I raised my head to see Edward now beside me. His dark gaze brooding and angry.
"We had an arrangement." He hissed.
As much as I loathed what he had done, I found myself huddling into his familiar embrace. In this hell he was the only thing I knew, so I tried to take some comfort in that.
"Our deal is still negotiable." Aro countered.
A low growl seeped from Edwards chest in response.
"You're no longer a man of his promise then?"
Aro laughed at this in mocking fashion.
"No, I am a man of opportunity and gain dear Edward. Having Isabella as a mate to one of my own will serve me better."
I shook my head as Demerti licked his lips with lust and glanced my way.
"That isn't what we agreed upon." Edward bit back.
"Things change Edward." Aro seethed. "Be wise and except this... your particular gifts are far too valuable to eliminate. So hold your tongue."
Aro snapped his head toward the door then, his eyes fixed there, as if he could hear someone approaching.
I felt Edward pull me in closer to his side and watched as his gaze suddenly softened.
"Alice-" He breathed, his tone full of a surprising reverence.
The double doors then opened and my eyes welled with new tears, as the tiny woman with the pixy cut and brilliant white smile, made her presence known. She looked at me with great sadness as Felix and Demetri took hold of her.
"Take your hands off me!" She yelled, looking to Edward for help.
"Release her. She is a guest here." Aro asserted, waving off his lethal guard. "I myself have summoned her, though I do suspect you were already in route?"
"Yes, this is true."
She was released then and approached me first, her hands coming to cradle my face.
"Oh Bella. I'm so very sorry for this."
I tried to move toward her but stopped when Edward tightened his hold on me. Alice grimaced at him and the two of them shared a heated glance that I assumed was full of colorful language.
"I asked you here with divine purpose Alice." Aro reminded her, holding out his hand.
She approached him with timid steps and took his offered hand, their amber and crimson gazes locking instantly.
Edward growled low in his chest and I knew that whatever she was revealing to Aro was something Edward disapproved of.
"Interesting- very interesting." Aro stated, releasing her hand with a sly and unsettling grin. "I see where our dilemma is. This would pose a mess now wouldn't it?"
"It is true. You underestimate the wolves. I have focused diligently to overcome the difficult holes in my visions for you. To show you the destruction you will face if you keep Bella here."
I felt my heart slow its frantic pace as she continued to speak.
"Jacob knows she's missing... and he knows who has taken her. This has caused a shift in him. You would be a fool to dismiss it. He will come for her. They all will and they will leave your beloved Volterra in ruins. Just as the vision you've seen now... it will come to pass. Jacobs course will not change."
Aro went silent as his eyes lingered on hers in question.
"Isabella is-"
"Destined for another." Alice finished.
Edward released me then at once and took a menacing step toward Alice.
"She is not his-"
"You had no right to take her." Alice fumed.
"She is my singer."
"No Edward. She is Jacobs imprint."
My gasp was audible and my eyes were wide as they met Alice's.
"It's true, Bella. You are tied to Jacob and without you, he won't survive."
"Take me back!" I gasped, taking hold of Alice. "Please...he needs me."
I thought of Emily and Sam, my mind filling with the times I'd seen them together and though Jacob hadn't yet talked to me about it, I knew just how strong an imprints pull was by the example I'd seen from them.
"You know our kind here in Volterra wish to keep conspicuous... we do not need a scene." Aro hissed, waving off Edwards outburst.
A loud crash shook the floor beneath us, ceasing the argument. Felix and Jane flitted to the doors, throwing them open as a rush of choking smoke billowed in past them.
"What was that!" Aro yelled, marching forward to see what had brought on such mayhem.
Alice yanked me from Edward so fast that my head whirled.
"You're too late." She warned. "The wolves are here."
"Felix... Demetri... Kill them all!" Aro ordered.
Another crash shook the floor, causing me to stumble to the ground as the smoke filled my lungs, making me feel choked.
I gasped for air, as Alice reached for me. I felt her lift me without effort and take off. Something caught her by the arm then, and forcefully whipped her back around. I was hurled to the floor, the impact jarring when I landed.
"Alice!" Edward raged. "You're not taking her anywhere."
I watched on in horror as they fought, Edwards strength dominating hers as she tried to gain the upper hand.
Chaos began to unfold around me and the smoke got heavier, covering me like a thick blanket and making my vision nearly vanish. I tried to cover my face with the sleeve of my dress, but it was no use. The smoke was too thick. I began to choke and gasp, struggling for air and trying to stand.
The floor felt warm... too warm ... and it was then that I realized why the smoke was so thick. Aro's lair was burning from the ground up.
I wanted to scream, but knew my lungs could not expel such breath right now.
Alice was suddenly in front of me again, drawing me into her arms and running so fast with me that all structure around me became one big blur. We made it down three floors, before I could blink twice and the heat from the fire quickly became more than I could stand. Everywhere I looked was set ablaze, falling apart in ruins, heaping piles of debri only remaining now in some places.
"I'm not gonna make it." I choked.
"Yes you are." Alice insisted.
"Not alive. Not human." I countered, looking around and seeing how trapped we were.
"The rest of my family is coming. I ran far ahead, but they are coming." She assured me. "You're gonna get out, Bella... alive and human."
That's when we heard it. A roar so loud it rattled the fragmented floor below us.
"Jacob." I gasped, trying to see through the smoke. Alice lurched forward, her body becoming still suddenly and her gaze focused on something I could not see.
I saw the smoke engulfing a large figure at the other end of the shattered hall, its frame appearing much too large to be Jacobs at first glance. I struggled to see through the blinding smoke as the figure stepped forward with another roar.
Russet fur became visible as he neared us, a snarl leaving him as his wolf gaze settled on Alice.
I struggled against her hold, as the realization sunk in, fumbling to the floor awkwardly as she released me.
Alice stayed close to me, her hands lingering while Jake drew near, his muzzle coming to gently nudge me as I moved unsteadily on my feet.
"Let me help her." Alice insisted, holding her palms up in submission to Jacob. An act of truce for the moment. He huffed once and watched as she secured me to her again. I faded in and out of consciousness as she ran with Jacob leading the way. I could feel the immediate shift of my weight to another set of arms when the air cleared around me... arms so warm I wanted to be wrapped in them forever. I tried to cling to the voice above me. That deep voice that surrounded me each time it called my name.
"Bells... Bella."
There was an urgency to it... a franticness behind it's normal smooth tone, but try as I may, I could not force my eyes to open and respond.
When the heavy darkness took me under, it did not erase the feel of the arms I was in and for that I was grateful.
Let me die here... please. Don't move me from this embrace. If this is what death was, I could handle it.
I was unaware of how much time had passed when the darkness began to fade from me. I remember hearing that voice... his voice calling to me again and again. Only now there was silence.
I tried to swallow and grimaced at how sore my throat felt. I was stiff and my chest felt heavy as if there was a weight on it. I forced my heavy lids to open, and was startled by the feel of a hand taking mine, a shift in weight next to me, and a hoarse whispered word filling the silence.
"Honey?"
I turned my head to see Jacob above me. His handsome face full of worry.
I tried to speak, but found the effort too painful. I glanced around, seeing nothing else familiar and began to panic.
Where was I?
Were we back in Volterra?
Jacob handed me a glass of water and encouraged me to take a drink. I felt the cold water ease the burning in my throat and tried to speak again. This time it was less painful.
"Jake..." I breathed, still trying to make sense of what had happened. My mind was fuzzy at best.
"You're okay, honey." He sighed, touching my cheek with the backs of his warm fingers. "You're in the hospital. Charlie's right outside."
I shook my head trying to understand.
"Do you remember anything?" He anxiously asked.
Alice... she had gotten me back here much faster than time should allow.
"Some." I admitted.
"They treated you for smoke inhalation. Doctor says your lungs are getting better."
I drew closer to him, as my mind ran back over the events in Volterra.
The fire. Alice and Edward... the fall of Aro's lair... and Jacob.
I stared back into his thoughtful gaze, seeing the adoration in them for me as a lone tear ran down my cheek.
"I... remember you in there... your roar... the sound of it."
Jacob carefully sat me up in bed with him, being cautious not to jostle me too much.
Just then a nurse came in and gave Jacob a rather disapproving look. "Visiting hours are over."
He looked at me and kissed my forehead, before trying to get up and exit the room as she requested. I felt my heart leap into my throat as his hand left mine.
"No... please- please let him stay." I begged.
The sound of the heart monitor speeding up and the desperate look on my face caught her attention and must have changed her mind, because she was quickly back pedaling.
Jacob ignored her anyway, and was already wrapping his arms around me, the monitor slowing as I placed my head on his chest.
"I suppose he can stay. You're being discharged in the morning."
"How long have I been here?" I quietly asked Jake, feeling his grip on me tighten in response to my question.
"Almost three days."
The nurse left us then, closing the door as she went.
"Three days?"
"Yes."
Jacobs tone was strained when he spoke, and I raised my head to see the pain etched in his features.
"You weren't breathing when they brought you in..." He continued.
I shuddered at the thought and huddled further into him.
"You came for me, Jacob."
His body became rigid, and I noticed he was now holding his breath. I took his hand in mine, feeling our fingers lace together.
"I didn't know if I'd get to you in time, Bells."
Anguish settled into his face with every word.
"But you did."
I thought of what Alice had said to Aro. The words now ringing clear in my mind.
"She is Jacobs imprint."
Jacob looked pained as he sucked in a breath. His hand tightening in mine.
I wanted to ask him a million questions. Wanted to know everything but I also wanted to give him the chance to tell me about it.
I hadn't noticed until now that he seemed bigger somehow. His hand engulfing mine more than before. His muscles seeming even more prominent.
How was this possible?
I pondered another statement from Alice ...
"It's caused a shift in him."
My thoughts ceased when I felt Jacobs lips press to my cheek. His whispered words filling the room.
"I thought I was too late."
"I'm alive because of you." I assured him.
He drew my chin up to his, placing a kiss on my lips that made me weak again.
"I can't ever lose you, Bella. I can't."
His words were full of a despair that was nearly tangible and it made me hurt for him. I cringed as I imagined what the past few days had been like for him and wondered just how much he had suffered when I was in Volterra.