After Midnight
Chapter Six
"A very good story, Jazz, but they're not going to fall for it," Alice said, kissing Jasper on the lips.
"Well, it was worth a try," Edward muttered.
"What exactly did you tell them?" Bella demanded. Jacob was holding the baby, Renesmee, while Bella leaned against her husband.
"Nothing to worry about," Jasper mumbled.
Bella cringed. "You told them I was dead, didn't you?" When Jasper didn't respond, Bella leapt to her feet. "You did, didn't you?" When he nodded meekly, Bella snarled. "Do you know what they're going to do now? They're going to tell Charlie what happened. It's all ruined, I'll never be able to see him again." She quieted when she was instantly calm. She made a face at Jasper, but sat down, feeling much more cheerful than before.
"Don't worry about it," Alice said, closing her eyes for a moment. "They didn't believe it. They're not saying anything to Charlie. But they are going to—"
Suddenly Alice gasped and cried, "No!"
"What is it?" Rosalie said, springing to her feet and rushing to her sister.
"They've made the connection."
"What? What connection?" Esme, their beautiful adopted mother asked from the kitchenette.
"They found our house. Found the picture of the Volturi in Italy. Saw Carlisle in the picture, and recognized him from recent pictures in the house. They've made the connection that there's something off about us and that the secret lies in Italy."
"No," Bella breathed. "They're going to their deaths!"
"It gets worse," Alice said, her voice shaking. "Bella, your dad and their dad are old friends. They were partners when they worked for the New York Police Department. Their last case ended very badly."
Bella stared at her sister-in-law. "What-?"
"Did your dad ever mention a Fenton Hardy?"
"Yeah, they were great friends, and—wait, these guys are his kids? Why didn't you tell me this before, Alice? We could have done more to protect them!"
Alice shook her head. "They just now made the decision to go to Italy. Aro is very…interested in them. That's how I know this information." She seemed distracted. "Carlisle needs to get back—soon. This could be very, very bad."
"Why is Aro so interested?" Jasper demanded.
"Because…their last case involved the Volturi," Alice said softly.
"I don't believe a word of it," Frank said defiantly as the boys parked their rented car in Charlie's driveway.
"Me neither," Joe agreed. "Now we know something freakish is going on. If only we knew what." He paused. "I don't think we should mention this to Charlie."
Frank nodded. "Agreed."
"But we should get him to give us directions to the Cullens' old house. Maybe we'll get a clue of where to go from there."
"Again: agreed."
Ten minutes later, they were driving through the dense woods on a barely visible path, on their way to a secluded fortress in the middle of nowhere.
It took them a while, but they finally found their way to the Cullens' house, a large white house that sprawled over quite a bit of land. There were no signs of life; not a car parked out front or a light on inside. No indistinct murmur from a television and no sign of motion. The house appeared to be completely deserted.
"I want to get a look inside," Joe whispered; there was really no reason for him to lower his voice but he did anyway, he felt creeped out in the woods where the silence was so dense he could almost taste it.
Frank nodded; he, too, had an eerie feeling about the empty, forlorn house. "Alright," he whispered back. "I don't think anyone's been here for a while but let's be careful just in case."
They made their way carefully to the front door. "Should we knock?" Joe wondered aloud. "Just in case?"
Frank shook his head after a moment of thought. "If the kidnappers are in there, we don't want to give them any warning that we're here. D'you have your lock pick kit with you?"
Joe did, but it turned out that there was no reason for him to use it. Apparently the Cullen family felt confident that their location and reputation would dissuade anyone from breaking into their house. Either that, or they had been in too much of a hurry when they left…maybe taking a captive with them.
They were shocked at the elegance and brightness of the large house. Many of the walls were made of glass; the space was wide and open, the solid walls painted light colors like white and peach. They were in a spacious entryway; to their left was an elaborate kitchen, spotless and looking as if it were rarely, if ever, used. To their right was a great living room, complete with a large screen television and several comfortable couches. A white painted staircase spiraled up to the second story.
Joe nodded toward the staircase. Frank dipped his head in agreement. The brothers quickly, quietly ascended the stairs that wound around and around…Joe was actually feeling a bit dizzy when he and his brother reached the top. The hallway led to several different doors; most were open. The brothers skimmed over the first three but they didn't seem to hold anything important. They all sported large, plush couches and were stocked with CDs, books, DVDs; anything and everything that might interest an average American. The third room contained many medical books; the brothers assumed this was the doctor and his wife's room. There were no beds at all. Odd.
The next door they came to was shut, but not locked. The boys deduced fairly easily that this was Edward Cullens' room. There was a black leather couch by the window, a stereo system that would put any system the Hardys had ever owned to shame. Hundreds of CDs lined the walls, ranging from classical music like Beethoven to heavy metal. There were pictures of Bella set up on the nightstand, shelves, and hanging perfectly straight on the wall.
"Do you find it kind of weird that none of the bedrooms have beds?" Joe asked incredulously, glancing at the leather sofa.
"Well, Charlie said the Cullens were a bit…eccentric," Frank supplied unhelpfully.
Joe was busy checking out Edward's vast collection of music. "Man, this guy's got all of Aerosmith, Three Days Grace, Green Day…he's even got every Johnny Cash CD ever made!" he marveled. Then he chuckled. "He's even got a bunch of old records, look—Elvis and even seventies teen pop sensation Shaun Cassidy." He chuckled. "I had no idea these were even around anymore."
Frank sighed. "Can we focus, Joe? Please?"
Joe exhaled loudly and muttered something about no appreciation for the fine arts, which caused Frank to snort in laughter. "Fine Arts? I think you'd better come up for a better excuse for snooping through other people's music collection, little brother."
Joe glared at his brother indignantly. "Hmph. He's a suspect, isn't he? Who knows, there could be a clue hidden inside one of these CDs…"
Frank rolled his eyes. "Keep dreaming, bro. Come on, let's check out the rest of the house."
The next room they came to was locked. Joe grinned, glad to be able to put his lock-picking skills to use at last. It was a very difficult lock and it was nearly seven minutes later that the brothers heard the satisfying click of a job well done. The boys were amazed at what this room held.
It looked like Carlisle Cullen had managed to bring the hospital home with him. He had a full lab, complete with medical supplies, tools, and instruments the boys had never seen before. An examining table and a long bed with crinkly paper laid out on top added a more doctor's office feel to the place. The boys hurried to the other side of the room, where another heavy door was waiting to be unlocked. About nine minutes later, they were in.
This room must have been the doctor's study. There was a desk with neatly organized folders, papers, and charts. Pictures of the young doctor with his gorgeous wife, two stunning daughters, and three unearthly handsome sons decorated most of the available desk area. On the walls were magnificent paintings, some of which looked hundreds of years old.
The boys examined the wondrous works of art in silence, taking in the vast array of colors, textures, and patterns that looked like only a master could have painted. One in particular caught Frank's interest. It was a painting of four men standing on a rooftop in what looked like somewhere in Europe, staring up at the sky. All wore black cloaks and were deathly pale, with eyes ranging from black to crimson to amber. One of the people looked very, very familiar.
"Joe, look at this!" Frank exclaimed. He examined the date and place of the painting, which was written on a plaque and showed it to his brother, who shrugged.
"Yeah. Painted a few centuries ago, in Venice, Italy. What's the big deal?"
"Look at the man in the middle? Who is he?"
Joe stared. "That's Doctor Cullen. But…there's no way…I mean…" he faltered, unsure of what this meant. This work of art was anything but recent. No one could have faked the aging evidence and pure Renaissance feel of this picture, even with its strange hue and tone. But there the doctor was, looking the exact same, standing on that forlorn rooftop with three other men with translucent skin and dark eyes. Then he snapped his fingers. "Italy! Remember what Charlie said, Frank?"
"Yeah, a few months after they broke up, Edward got into some trouble in Italy," Frank breathed, getting excited. "There's something really off with the Cullens. I have a feeling that if we can find out what that is, finding Bella will be much easier. And the answer to the mystery—at least, the mystery of the Cullens—lies in Italy."
~Emachinescat ^..^