"I knew Declan when he was calling himself Mason Dupree. I can still remember our first meeting. He was very talkative, a master of polite conversation. He was very interested in my background and interrogated me on even the smallest details. But, he did share with me a most remarkable story about his own mortal life and his transformation. He claimed to be a great and prolific author in life, but his critics and rivals conspired against him and ruined him forever. You must keep in mind, of course, that Mason is a fantastic liar and I never discovered how much of this was true.
"And then he showed me his power. It is very rare to happen upon such a tremendous gift. It is equally rare to find an immortal who would use such power responsibly. At will, he could cure himself of immortality and live a human life. Relatively human. In his mortal state, he could, with just a touch, rid a vampire of his affliction and take it into himself."
"It's true, then. He really did make me mortal again."
"Yes. He liked to refer to it as his 'little fiction.' Such a gift, though, would not have gone unnoticed for long." Edward face paled immediately, though his pallid skin was still no match for the delicate ivory he once possessed.
"The Volturi would have found him, eventually, but Mason was proactive. He contacted the Volturi himself. Aro could not resist adding Mason to his collection. Mason preferred to think of himself as the Volturi's personal writer and historian, but Aro told me once that he loathed Mason's writing. He only prized his power. Mason was with them for some time before I arrived –"
Edward slammed his fists on the table. "Why would the Volturi interfere like this? They said—"
"Unfortunately, the Volturi act on whims. More than likely, they felt they had given Bella enough of a grace period."
"And Alice did not see any of this?" Carlisle shrugged.
"We did not know anyone like Alice in those days. Perhaps Mason is right. His shift between human and vampire may render him impossible to track through Alice's visions. Also, Mason is Aro's confidant. I imagine he received information about Bella merely in passing and acted on it without orders from the Volturi. This is all speculation, but you can see how Alice might have been deceived." Edward's anger cooled immediately in the face of this. I loosened my grip on the arms of my chair, which had tightened unconsciously as I listened to Carlisle. Talk of the Volturi stirred up nightmares that had interrupted my sleep since we rescued Edward from Italy. Dark figures clad in black cloaks, hovering around us. We thought there would be more time.
Damn it. We were just a day away from turning me. They would have had what they wanted.
"Damn it." I said aloud.
"You said that you knew how to reverse this?"
"Can't you just change him again?" I added. Carlisle had done it once for Edward before, why not again?
"I wish it were as simple as administering another bite. If that were the case, I could change you myself if that is what you wanted. As I discovered in my time with the Volturi, Mason's victims are immune to our venom. The only method of reversing what has happened to you is to reclaim what he stole.
"If you touch Mason again, your immortality will be returned to you."
"What?", we said at the same time. Carlisle nodded.
"Mason may have devastating power, but the deception is weak. All you need is a touch." Like trying to catch lightning, then.
"You are sure?" Carlisle sighed.
"I have never actually seen it happen. Mason is very careful about letting go of his power. He tends to…eliminate," Carlisle grimaced at the distaste of the word, "those he changes. But, you know how Aro is. He lets nothing stand in the way of his curiosity. Aro told me that when Mason first came to the Volturi, he had Mason grant him mortality for the day."
"And he willingly changed Aro back?"
"He would have been tied down by every member of the Volturi if he even hesitated to turn Aro back. But do not underestimate Mason's vanity. Aro has been forever delighted at Mason's addition to the society and Mason feeds on his high praise.
"It was a fascinating process from a professional standpoint. I still wish that I had been given the chance to examine Mason in his human form and see how truly human he was." Carlisle smiled ruefully, eyeing Edward up and down with professional curiosity.
"Mason is extremely dangerous. He has a sophisticated manner about him, but he is quite mad, quite obsessive. He will be coming here." Holy. "Now." Crow.