Chapter 1
"Emmett, Tanya's gonna be pissed that you knocked down
half her forest you know".
I grinned at my brother as I
deliberatley crashed into yet another tree. Sighing but smiling
despite himself, Jasper punched me not so lightly on the arm, never
breaking stride. I aimed a kick at him but missed, hitting instead a
young sapling that exploded in a shower of bark and twigs.
"Moron"
Jasper muttered under his breath.
"Want me to try again?"
I threatened innocently, failing to disguise my wide grin.
"Bring
it on Em" he challenged, stopping to move into a defensive
crouch behind me. Still smiling, I bent down, colied to
spring.
"Emmett!Emmett help!"
I was running before I
had even processed the words. All I knew was that it had been the
voice of an angel, my angel, and that angel was in pain.
I
sighed with relief when I saw her, standing unharmed on the fringes
of the forest. It's amazing how many gruesome images can fly through
your mind in just a few short seconds. As soon as I reached her I
pulled her behind me, scanning our surroundings for the threat that
was surely there, waiting to pounce. I was aware of Jasper appearing
behind me, his breathing laboured as he shared my angels
pain.
"There's no one here Emmett" he managed to choke
out.
Relaxing only a little, I turned to face my terrified
wife.
"Rose what's wrong?What's happened?" I demanded
urgently.
"Edward" she whispered hollowly through
perfect lips.
I flinched as she said my missing brothers name.
These past few months without my favourite brother had been painful
to say the least. I missed him, plain and simple, as did the rest of
my Esme.
Edward had always been her
favourite, her most beloved son, and his absence had seen her sink
into a cloud of the depression like none I had ever seen before, and
even Carlisle could not make her smile. I wondered idly what Edward
had done now to upset Rose, what new way he had found to tear a hole
in our hearts.
"What's the little runt done now?" I said
in falsely jovial tone.
Rose stared at me with wide, horrified
eyes.
"Em, I did something bad. Edward's gone...to Italy"
she sobbed tearlessly.
I stared at my flawless lover,
uncomprehending. Ok, so Edward had decided to do some sightseeing in
Florence. So what? Sure, it was inconvenient, but that didn't justify
Rosalie's pained expression.
"The Volturie Em. He's gone to
the Volturi" Jasper whispered, catching on faster than I
had.
"The Volturi?What did he do that for?" I asked,
still confused.
"I told him about Bella....jumping off the
cliff. I thought I was doing the best for him, I thought he should
know the truth, but he threw away his phone and then Alice called and
it turns out that Bella's alive but Edward's gone to Italy to pull a
Romeo and we have to STOP HIM!" she screeched, the words
blurring as she hissed them out. Finally I understood. Agony
threatened to rip me apart as I considered Rose's words.
"No!"
I bellowed, grabbing Rosalie's tiny hand in mine. Without a sound we
sprinted back through the forest, ignoring the loud booms as the
tree's fell around us.
