I'm sorry this is such a short chapter. I would make it longer, but I have to go to work. I'll try to update again tonight. Enjoy and REVIEW please!!
The plane ride had been peaceful. There was a calming aspect to the endless sky of blue. I wanted to just stay in that plane next to my true love forever. Every time we descended, I knew that we were getting closer to our destination.
Finally we had come to the last leg of the trip and landed in Rome. Edward left me in the plane for a bit, telling me that he would be right back with a car.
Next thing I knew, a bright red Ferrari was screeching to a stop right outside the plane. My mouth fell open. Stupid cars... Couldn't he ever go for something that was less inconspicuous?
I cut off the flow of air to my lungs and descended the ladder from the plane. Edward was standing next to the car with a big grin on his face. "You have to love Italian cars..." he mused. I gave him a look and he just chuckled at me. I walked over to the passenger side and he held the door open for me. I saw the words 430 Scuderia on the back next to the Ferrari symbol.
As soon as he was in the car and the door was shut, I exhaled loudly. "Could you have picked any more of a flashy car?" I asked him.
"Hmm, I don't think so really. But since when do I go for boring cars? And at least now we have a car in Italy," he laughed.
"You bought this?!" I exclaimed.
"Well, I don't know how long we are going to be here... I figured we should have some means of transportation," he said in a more subdued tone. Oh, yea. I had momentarily forgotten the whole reason for this trip.
Edward started the car and merged onto the highway. I realized that we were heading north and I asked, "Why didn't we just fly to Florence? It would have been faster."
"Yes, it would have been faster, but the Volturi also may have been alerted to our arrival if we had flown in there. They have eyes and ears everywhere around their city and the arrival of a private jet would have caused some curiosity," he explained.
Always the one for the most logical situation. Good thing one of us thought everything through, I laughed to myself. "And besides," he continued. "This car is fast enough to get us there with plenty of time. The Volturi weren't scheduled to leave until early tomorrow afternoon. We should be there by nightfall."
We lapsed into silence after that, Edward always keeping one hand on the wheel and the other entwined in my fingers. The sun lowered in the sky as we sped north. Edward stopped once for gas, but other than that, the trip was uninterrupted.
It was dusk when the city atop the hill came into view. My stomach seemed to drop out of my body when I saw it but I would not back out now. I let the image of the Cullen family swim into my mind and they were my inspiration. They were the reason that I was doing this. I would protect them.
Edward slowed the car and began the climb up to the city gate. His knuckles were strained over the steering wheel and his grip on my hand became tighter.
He pulled through the gates and thankfully the streets were relatively deserted. Edward pulled the car into a small alcove right near the entrance to the city. When the car was stopped, he reached around behind his seat and handed me a sweatshirt with a hood. He pulled a similar one over his head and it hid almost all of his skin, save for his face. I shrugged on the sweatshirt and pulled the hood up, tucking my hair in, masking my features. I kept the sunglasses on and stepped out of the car.
I had forgotten to hold my breath. I was assaulted with hundreds of smells, each the more delicious than the next. My body shuddered and I grabbed my head between my hands, trying to keep control. I felt Edward's strong arms wrap around me and I pressed my head into his chest, breathing in his scent. We stood there for a few moments while I calmed my raging emotions.
"Well, well, well. This is quite a surprise," a deep voice echoed from behind us. Edward whirled around, spinning me behind his back and forcing me against the ancient stone of the closest building. His arms came out in protective defense in front of me, his body less than an inch away from me.
I heard a chuckle and saw three hooded figures emerge from the shadows advancing towards us. I recognized the voice of the closest cloak who allowed his hood to fall back. Sure enough, Demetri stood before us with a bemused expression on his face.
The other vampires allowed their hoods to fall back and I saw Felix and the beautiful vampire named Heidi flanking him. This had curious expressions on their perfect faces, also mingled with confusion.
"What brings you to Volterra, Edward? Ah, and I see that you are not alone. I can only assume that it is Bella that you are hiding behind you. She smells much the same... except different," he remarked. Then a smile spread across his face. "So you did change her after all! Well that is too bad, she would have been so delicious."
A low growl issued from Edward's throat. "Stay calm Bella. Do not let your power get out, we do not want them to know the extent of what you can do yet," Edward murmured in a voice so low that I could only hear him. I nodded ever so slightly and calmed my mind, thinking of Edward's scent and nothing else.
"Shall we move to a more fitting environment, perhaps?" Demetri asked. Edward dropped his arms and dropped his chin to his chest in resignation. I heard Demetri laugh once more and then begin to lead the way through the dark alley. Edward wrapped his arm tightly around my waist and steered me after the hulking vampire. I heard Heidi and Felix follow us from behind.
I sucked a breath and held it in my lungs, stopping the flow of air. I saw Demetri's eyes flicker back and he chuckled once more. "Still not in control are you Bella? You must be quite new to this life," he laughed. Edward's arm tightened around me and I concentrated on him, blocking out Demetri.
We walked through the city, avoiding any human life and came to the huge business facade of a building that secretly held the home of the Volturi. I cringed as we approached the building and Edward ran his hand along my arm, soothing me.
We entered the doors and proceeded to an industrial style elevator. I allowed my breathing to resume normally as we stepped inside, the three Volturi at ease, Edward and I tensed in the corner. The elevator dinged and the doors closed. We began to rise and my body became more rigid with each passing second.
The electronic display displayed the number 4 and the doors opened. Demetri stepped out and motioned for us to follow. Edward sighed and followed him, keeping me at his side. We walked down the long hallway and I never thought it would end. Eventually it did and we came to a stone wall with a wooden door frame set in it.
Demetri stopped at the door and held it open, motioning for us to enter. I took one deep breath and crossed the threshold with my love at my side.