27.
Lisa's perspective –
A door creaked shut behind me. I could hear someone slap a switch. Aro pulled off the bag and rag, allowing me to look around the room. If I had to describe a typical villa, this was it. I stood in a huge hallway, a new chandelier hanging above my head. I would guess that it was been recently put there to replace a candle chandelier. The floor beneath me was pure marble, a milky white color with yellow accents, covered by a deep red and gold rug. A mahogany table stood under a hanging mirror, reflecting back the image of two people, one tall, long hair flowing down over his deep red cape, and the other looking frail and small, blonde hair framing a pale ghostly face. Reflected in the mirror, I could see the painting hanging on the wall behind me. It reminded me of the painting Carlisle had in his office of the Volturi, though this one appeared to be more recent.
Aro tapped my arm. "You can stop pretending your cuffs are still whole now."
I glanced at him and slowly let my arms fall to my sides. I wondered how long he had known, but he didn't say anything else about it.
"Do you like it," Aro whispered to me. Something in the tone of his voice took me by surprise. My attention turned to his face.
"It's… nice," I answered, not wanting to make him think I liked any of this. The gloves were still on his hands.
He motioned to a man, bigger than any I had ever seen, standing in front of a wooden door. The huge bulking figure marched towards me, grabbing me harshly, and pulled me to the door. A putrid odor sat around the man like his own personal bubble, and I could see scars marring his sickly white skin all over. A hood covered his head. He pulled the door open and all I saw was stairs leading into complete darkness. It was as if the walls were absorbing the light; it was nearly impossible for me to see anything, even with my perfect eyesight.
"I'll see you later," Aro chimed after me.
As I stumbled down in front of the man, I wondered if I was going to be locked up in a medieval cell with a skeleton of a man. Finally, when I was sure I would never see light again, a flickering appeared ahead. Soon we can upon a flickering candle and I could see another wooden door. The man reached in front of me to push the door open, motioning me through. He gave me a shove when I hesitated.
The hallway I was now in had nothing but doors on each side. The guard led me to one and shoved me inside.
The room was completely furnished and I wondered if I was in the wrong place. Before I could turn around and ask any questions though, the guard pulled the door shut with a bang. I could hear a deadbolt slide home. I was completely alone.
A queen-sized bed sat in the middle of the room. In one corner stood a dresser with a mirror. Two chairs and a small table sat in the other corner, on top of a Persian rug.
I wandered over to the bed, the satin comforter nearly swallowing me whole, and rummaged through the bedside table. I found a key and used it to unlock the shackles, which clattered to the floor. Without thinking about it, I began rubbing my wrists as I looked around the room again. Paintings of vineyards and Italian homes hung on the stone walls.
Alice, why didn't you see this coming, I wondered again. The shield I had sensed from before was still there and I wondered if someone was in the room with me for a split second. My head whipped around but I found no one.
A huge wardrobe sat beside the door and I wandered over to it. I pulled it open slowly and gasped in surprise. The smell of mothballs and dust filled me nose as I looked inside. From one end to the other, all I saw were old-fashioned cocktail dresses and fancy ball gowns. I pulled at the skirt of one to examine it.
It was a caramel colored gown, complete with puffy sleeves and a big bow in the back. I wondered how long these dresses had sat here.
I pulled out another dress with looked newer. It was a deep purple strapless dress with beads sown into the front in a beautiful pattern. I ran my hand over the front, feeling the cold satin flow over my hand.
I bit my lip and glanced around the room, though I knew I was completely alone, before pulling out the dress and laying it on the bed. I stood for a minute looking down on it before pulling off my shirt and pants. Carefully I took the dress off the hanger and slipped it on. It fit me perfectly. As I moved to the floor length mirror behind the bed, I felt the satin roll and fall over my skin with every movement.
The person looking back at me in the mirror was stunning. The dress hugged me tightly, the beaded pattern coming down to my bellybutton. I pulled my hair over my shoulders and looked myself up and down over and over again.
The door creaked open and I whirled around, ashamedly hugging my arms to hide the dress. Aro's figure filled the doorway. He chuckled.
"I see you found my little gift for you." Walking to the wardrobe slowly, he ran his fingers over the various dresses. "Most of these are my wife's old dresses. I though you might like some of them, but I also got you some new ones." He turned around. "Like that one," he added. He looked me up and down and I felt dirty all of a sudden. I wanted nothing more to take the dress off just so Aro would stop looking at me like that. But he never gave me the chance. He held his hand out and announced, "Dinner time, my lady."
My mind began buzzing as I tried to think about what he could mean. As we walked, a sense of dread fell over me. Something was absolutely not right about this. I felt like there was someone behind us, following us like a ghost, but something told me not to turn around and look. Silence followed us as we made our way up the stairs, stopping halfway to the top at a door exactly like the other ones. He pushed it open and led me into a room with a huge table in the middle. A candelabrum sat in the middle under an olive green runner, all of the candles lit and casting an eerie glow over the whole room. A tall chair sat at each end of the long table and Aro pulled out one for me, obliging me to sit.
Get out, Lisa, this is absolutely not safe!
I shut my eyes for a second to try and calm myself down. I could handle this, couldn't I?
'Dinner time', what could he have possibly meant by that?
Aro pulled at his napkin, pushing it neatly into his shirt. His hand shot out and motioned for someone to come.
I could smell it before the maid got anywhere near us. My mind screamed for me to run. My throat began to burn like never before. I could taste it on my tongue, the blood from the rag falling over my tongue. My eyes went wide as I stared at Aro. I dared not to breathe, my nails digging into the table.
But Aro didn't seem to notice my pain. He chuckled as the girl approached, holding a platter with two empty glasses. A long gash ran up her arm, pulsing slightly with blood that trickled down to her wrist, where it fell in large drops, staining the stone floor. Aro licked his lips slowly.
"Nothing quite like it, is there?"
When the girl was standing right next to him, I noticed how beautiful she was. She wore no make-up, her hair pulled back in a messy bun, but there was a natural beauty about her. She had full red lips and a small and slightly pointed nose, giving her an air of sophistication. Her eyes shinning brightly like she was intoxicated with something.
Venom.
I could see the bite marks all over her skin. My gag reflex kicked in and I sucked in a breath of air. The smell filled my nostrils, burning down my throat like vodka. I gasped and shut my mouth against it.
Aro grabbed the girl's arm, all the humor gone from his face, and licked at the blood dripping from her wound. The girl didn't seem to notice, staring blankly ahead.
"Mmm," hummed Aro, his eyes always on mine. He was begging me to try it and several times I nearly thought I would. The burning consumed my mind, burning at the back of my eyes. I felt like a druggie trying to go clean with a needle lying on the table.
My fangs sliced into my lip and I bit down hard, hoping the pain would distract me, but no such luck.
Aro took one of the wineglasses off the tray. "Some people are not comfortable with drinking directly from the source at first, though that is simply the best."
He held the cup under the girl's arm, squeezing it like a lemon until the blood nearly spilled over in the cup. Then with great skill, he slid the cup across the table to me, where it came to rest right in front of my eyes, not having spilt a single drop.
"Try it," Aro said in a seductive voice.
My mind began to scream for the blood. No matter how hard I tried, the smell seemed to be everywhere, permeating into me. I clenched my eyes shut and gasped. I could not let Aro have his way. I knew if I drank this cup, I would never be able to go back and Aro could do what he wanted with me.
"Aro!" I screamed in complete furry, focusing all my energy on him. I stood up so fast that the chair clattered to the floor. A chunk of the table flew off as I yanked my hands away. The cup fell over, spilling its contents all over the wood table. The smell was everywhere now. The girl seemed to come out of her trance and she stared in shock at the spilled glass.
"You… will…never…control…me." I spat at Aro through clenched teeth before turning and storming out of the room. Again I felt a presence behind me, but I blindly walked forward, up the stairs and to the front door. I clawed at it in anger before strong arms grabbed me from behind and dragged me, kicking and screaming, back to my room. My mind went completely numb. He tossed me inside, once again locking the door, never letting me see his face.