Trust Factor

Chapter 9: Death Can Leave You Wondering What's Next

Sunday January 18-1:35am-Volterra-Italy

I'm writing now because I don't know where this is going to lead. Monica and Hailey have yet to be found, but I know if they are, they will not be alive. Rikki's words keep repeating in my head. That girl, that vampire, wanted me, wanted to suck my blood, wanted to kill me. With that planted in my mind, I don't know who to trust. Everyone wants to kill me.

Wind blew from the open window, knocking her blond hair around. The small desk light was the only thing helping Bella see. The light of the almost full moon shone through the window hitting Bella and making her think.

One more day. I don't know what to expect. I could die, or I could kill. Whatever I do there is only one thing I'm sure of, I won't be able to control it, even if I try.

Sunday January 18-2:12am-Emma's house-Australia

"You know if we get caught, we're going to be in big trouble, and I'm not talking eternal grounding," Emma said as Lewis quickly pocked through the piles of papers lining Neal Gilbert's desk.

"I thought you wanted me to win the other's trust back?" Lewis asked as he pulled out the file he wanted. "This will do the trick. Taking this means, not only will we learn more, they won't."

"You know you can be very devious," Emma said with a small smile that Lewis didn't catch.

Lewis looked up and said, "Years of practice. I have four brothers remember. Where do you think I got some of my good English papers?"

Emma laughed a little as the two of them snuck out of Neal's secret office. She quickly and quietly guided him back to her room before they were caught out of bed and together so early. Lewis's room was down on the second floor with Elliot as Emma's parents got the first floor and Emma got the third.

Once the door was shut, Lewis started to go through the notes in the file. Emma sat on her bed, watching with interest.

"Do you really want to win Cleo's trust back?" Emma asked suddenly. "Because you don't sound like you do."

Lewis stopped short and set the file down. He took a deep breath, thinking about Emma' question. Then he answered, "I'm not entirely sure I do."

Sunday January 18-8:39am-Ash's House-Mexico

Ash walked in the living room to find Rikki sitting on the window seat, mesmerized by what she saw. The sun was just coming up over the trees showing the unchanged drive. A car was parked there that had not been there the day before.

"They were careless," Rikki said. "They left that car."

"They are monsters, Rikki. Their carelessness is only hurting them. Something you wouldn't get caught in, right," Ash asked.

Rikki turned around, her eyes bloodshot, bags under them. "They are not monsters. They are just different, and evil."

"They are not monsters but they are evil?" Ash asked sitting down on the couch keeping his eyes on Rikki.

"Yeah, monsters can be nice, once your evil, there is no changing that. Take a look at Charlotte if you don't believe me. We gave her just a little trust and that's why we almost lost," Rikki explained before directing her attention back to the rising sun.

"What about a nice monster?"

"Well you trust me, and Emma. We can be monsters, even if we don't mean to, and you boys seem to still trust we won't hurt you. You know we can, and there are times we can't control what we do. So you can't call something that hurts other people a monster."

"I guess you're right," Ash said thinking about what Rikki said. "Here you need some sleep, did you stay up all night?"

Rikki nodded as Ash took her in his arms and carried her to her room.

Sunday January 18-10:30am-Volterra-Italy

"What's happening," Ginger asked.

Will held the two little girls close to him as the stood in the crowded underground layer. People of all ages and backgrounds were standing in a dark room. So many different languages were being used, Will could not get them all straight. All he understood was, no one was told the same thing.

"We are going to find mommy, right?" Calla asked, her tears starting to come fast.

"Calla, if anything, I will not let anything hurt you or Ginger, got it," Will said whipping the little girl's face. "I don't have a good feeling about this, so you two have to do everything I say."

There was a noise as a woman walked in and said in three different languages, "Follow me now, don't dally."

People started moving toward a door into a hall way leading to a big open room. There in front of them were many pale people with blood red eyes. The girl who tricked them on to the bus was there with a smile on her face. In the crowd of people, Will heard a girl's voice say, "That's the girl who tricked us down here."

"She will go back for Bella and Caprice," Will heard another girl answer.

He took Calla and Ginger and moved quickly through the crowd to where the two girls were standing and asked, "Are you talking about Bella Hartley?"

"Yes, how do you know her?" the first girl asked.

"She is my girlfriend, I think," Will said.

He didn't get anything else in, because just the there was screaming and running. Will looked up to find the pale people jumping and attacking people left and right. They caught them quick, pulled them down and bit into their necks. Then they were left life less as the pale on moved on to the next victim. Will knew there was nowhere to run to, the door was locked and they were coming fast. Before he could grab her, Ginger was taken.

"Ahhh, G.G," Calla cried leaning into Will.

"Vampires," Will whispered.

The girl that brought him there heard him and jumped, leaving a lifeless body of a German boy. She smiled at Will and then closed her eyes. Will screamed and dropped Calla, who was quickly picked up by another pale boy. The girl whispered, "It's nice to know things before you die, right? I'm Jane and you are Will. I'm a Vampire…"

"And… my girl…friend is… a mermaid," Will choked out through his pain.

Jane stopped her torture and took Will by the arms. The screams of the two girls Will had just talked to were dyeing as they were. Jane kept a strong grip as she pulled him past the happy vampires and dead bodies up to another pale man. She dropped him and many of the other vampires looked up at the scene she was putting on. No one else was alive, all bodies drained of blood and the vampires where interested in what Jane was doing.

"He says his girlfriend is a mermaid," Jane said. "What do you say about that, Aro?"

Aro took Will's hand and clasped it. They sat like that for a while. Then Aro took a deep breath and let go. He said in a surprised voice, "His girlfriend, more like his girlfriends, there are three of them. Beautiful girls with gold tails in the water and power, Rikki… Cleo…and the most lovely… Bella….Bella, Bella, Bella. I think we could use him and them."

Jane smiled as another vampire took him away to a room.

"Do you really think these girls and this boy are worth something?" Marcuse asked.

"Oh we'll get rid of the boy, after we get the girls. Two have nice powers, the other is to blow off steam… Bella," Aro said with a smile.

The others smiled too, thinking of the vampire girl with her daughter and the family he wanted to get rid of.

"So you think the boy can lead us to them?" Caius asked.

"Oh I saw he knows exactly where the Bella girl is, and I'm more than positive she can lead us to her friends," Aro answered with a pleased look on his face.