Disclaimer: Don't own Twilight.
-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-
The wait commenced by the metal detectors. Alice and Jasper spent the time discussing places to go hide by looking at the departure board. Bella looked increasingly nervous. It was probably from nerves of worry about Edward. She gave the envelope to Alice after a while, but aside from that nothing much happened until half an hour before the arrival.
"I think I'll go eat now," said Bella, standing.
"I'll come with you," said Alice.
"Do you mind if Jasper comes instead? I'm feeling a little..." Her eyes conveyed the meaning. Jasper stood, walking off with her. This left Alice and Aubrey sitting alone on the small row of chairs.
"The flight is ten minutes early," said Alice after a minute.
"That's good," said Aubrey. She looked at Alice. "Hey, since my tracker isn't anywhere close, I'll just go get a drink down the hall there, m'kay?"
"You sure?" asked Alice cautiously.
"Come on, it's right there!" said Aubrey incredulously. Alice hesitated.
"Alright," she said, giving in.
"Be right back," said Aubrey, standing and walking down the hall amongst the crowds of people to the water fountain around the corner.
She spotted the fountain over by a Borders bookstore, and crossed over quickly. She bent down to drink, pressing the button.
'This must be what it's like for the Cullens to drink blood after a few weeks...imagine weeks without water...' she thought, finishing and straightening up. She turned to go...
...but something kept her standing still.
She turned and nearly screamed. A cold hand rushed to meet her lips.
"Shall we continue this little soirée someplace a little more...private?" asked the cold sadistic voice of Roger as he smirked at her.
He steered her back into a bookshop, pretending to be examining the different snacks on the wall. Aubrey chanced a glance out of the store window and spotted Jasper running along back to where Alice was. Aubrey's mouth opened wide.
"Scream and you'll wish you were dead," whispered Roger casually, as if he were commenting on the prices of the merchandise. Aubrey clamped her mouth shut.
Once all was clear, he lead her out of the bookstore, walking quickly towards the escalator. He turned sharply and pressed the button on the elevator instead. It opened and they got in quickly, closing the door before anyone else could enter.
"Where are we going?" asked Aubrey coldly.
"Somewhere a little more private, I've told you," said Roger, smirking evilly. The elevator let out on the street level. They walked out, pushing ahead of the line for a taxi and hurrying into the backseat of the first one that came.
"Where're you headed?" asked the kind cab driver.
"West Cactus street," said Roger. They pulled out of the airport lot and were soon driving through town.
"So, what brings you two to Phoenix?" asked the driver.
"Honeymoon," said Roger. "We just got hitched up in Vegas." His arm slid around Aubrey's waist and her eyes widened.
"Oh congratulations!" exclaimed the driver. "You two really in love?"
"Yes, our parents didn't approve though. We had to elope," said Roger.
"Well good for you two. True love conquers all, I say!"
"It does, doesn't it," said Roger, his nose brushing against Aubrey's cheek. "Give darling a kiss like a good girl," he whispered in a voice too low for the driver to hear.
Aubrey slowly turned her face to Roger and gave him a small kiss on the cheek, but his hand caught her face, forcing her lips onto his cold ones. His tongue immediately forced itself into her mouth and, as she started to pull away, a sharp canine caressed her lower lip threateningly. She relaxed, trying to calm herself. He broke off, a small smirk visible on his face as he tossed his head to the side, flipping the long hair out of his eyes. Aubrey looked into the front mirror and her eyes met the driver's.
"You alright there Miss? You look a little sick," he said.
"It's the fear of what her father will do when he finds out," said Roger. "After all...'eloping' does leave the parents shocked, as if standing out in the rain watching their children drive off into the night." Aubrey had no trouble catching the double meaning. He had been there, watching.
"Well, Miss, don't fret too much. All will be better soon," said the driver kindly.
"Yes, Aubrey, it will all be over soon," said Roger. Aubrey felt as if she would be sick.
They continued to drive along the dry streets of Phoenix until Roger called for the driver to stop. They got out onto the sidewalk outside a reasonably deserted strip mall.
"You sure I can't drive you the rest of the way?" asked the driver.
"No, thank you, sir, we can walk from here," said Roger, handing him the money plus a little extra.
"God bless you both," said the driver, waving and speeding off. Roger smirked, turning to Aubrey.
"Yes, God bless us," he said slyly. Aubrey turned away, but Roger caught her arm. "Now, darling, come along like a good girl, and I won't be forced to kill someone to compel you."
"Why do you want me anyway?" asked Aubrey. "Why not just kill me now and be done with it?"
"All in good time," said Roger, prodding her along. They walked along the sidewalk, Roger calmly steering Aubrey into an empty ice cream parlor.
He turned, locking the door. Aubrey, her arm free of her captor's grip, walked steadily to the counter, peering into the sliver of the back room she could see through a crack in the door behind the counter. Two pairs of legs could be seen on the floor. They weren't moving.
Aubrey's mouth opened to scream, but a cold hand covered it instantly, turning her face to face the face that would definitely haunt her dreams for weeks...well...if she had any dreams after today...
"Now, Aubrey Grace Neils, you're going to die." He began to fondle her hair, tucking it behind her ears with an almost loving touch. "You're going to die, and I'm going to leave your body here amongst the ice cream." It would have been a very funny line, if the tone hadn't been so sinister of course. "So I am asking you once and only once, because I believe everyone should have a chance, do you have any last words?"
Aubrey didn't speak. Her eyes were fixed on Roger's. He cocked his head to the side, raising an eyebrow.
"You have no last words?" he asked.
"Well, it's kind of my last hour alive. You can't rush these things," said Aubrey incredulously. A sly smile crept over Roger's attractive features. It was not a friendly sly smile. No, it was one of impending doom and demise. Sadistic.
"I wouldn't call it an hour, petit fleur," said Roger. Aubrey's face turned, if possible, an even paler shade of white. It contorted in anger and she stepped away from him.
"You're sick! Just wait! In a few minutes the Cullens will have tracked you down! Alice will see where you've taken me, and Edward will read your mind to see where we are!" Roger let out a laugh. A high, cold laugh.
"Please, spare me your jokes," he said. "Your friends have no inkling of where we are." Aubrey opened her mouth to protest, but Roger interrupted her. "Do you really think your dear lover would want that Edward reading my mind? Finding all of the...secrets he may be keeping from them that I know as well. His power works to block the mind, the entire mind when he wishes, but it is only when the person is within the same city. Now, blocking the mind would also block the decisions from being viewed, therefore canceling out Miss Alice's unique ability. So, really, your dear Marek is condemning you to death."
"He's not my lover," said Aubrey shortly. "He's my friend. And he wouldn't block your mind if my life was at stake."
"You obviously don't know him very well," said Roger. "Marek doesn't have friends. He just wants to keep a home for as long as he can. I mean first it was with his brothers, then Nathaniel, then after that it was off to the Americas and then he met the Cullens. He knows that that Edward won't tolerate his presence in their house anymore if he finds out his connection to people like...well...me. So, he's willing to go through whatever steps it takes to subdue that possibility."
"No...he wouldn't..." said Aubrey.
"Uh, yeah, he would. And as for you, I think you've had enough last words."
The cold hand wrapped around her waist, drawing her to him. She struggled against his grip as his head dropped to her neck. It did no good. Her legs began flailing as his icy lips touched her skin. An eruption of pain spread from the back of her head and she dimly realized he had quickly driven her up against the wall of the shop to stop her flailing. His tongue was between his lips, tasting her. The white fog of a faint appeared at the corners of her vision as she struggled, her heart racing.
Then he was off of her and she was on the ground, her head lying on the hard floor. The white fog was almost completely blocking her vision. The last thing she saw was a white hand descending in front of her eyes, lifting her head off of the floor.
-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-
I love the "…turning her face to face the face…" part!!!
That was totally not planned!
REVIEW!