Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. No copyright infringement is intended.

As always, huge thanks go to my pre-reader/cheerleader team. Gredelina1, Verseseven, IamTheAlleyCat and Mary-Alice-Brandon-Cullen. Also to Snarkymuch for beta'ing this chapter and listening to all my bitching when the words wouldn't flow. I love you all.

~ Chapter Six — A Broken Man ~

Emmett POV

There was an echoing bang as Edward slumped to the floor. His knees cracked the flagstones as he landed.

Alice gasped and hurried to his side. "Edward!" She tapped him lightly on the cheek. His only response was to draw his knees up to his chest.

"Oh dear," Aro said sadly. "I rather think we made the wrong choice after all."

He looked pointedly at the man in the throne to his left. Carlisle had told us about Marcus. When he lost his mate, he became a shell of the man he had been before. I looked from him to Edward, and a shudder of fear crept through me. Was this what would happen to him now? Had I lost my brother as well as my sister?

Rosalie was staring down at Edward with an expression of horror. "Help him," she whispered.

I didn't know how.

I hoisted him to his feet. I felt a little better when he held his own weight, though his shoulders hunched and his chin touched his chest. He looked broken.

I felt useless. My only gift to the world was my ability to protect. I had been given abnormal strength to fight with, but I could not fight this darkness that had taken over my brother. Just like I couldn't fight the creature that had stolen Bella away. If I had been there, I could have done something. I would have been able to keep her safe. But I had been too excited about the fight with the newborns to think. I had failed her and my family.

Jasper was looking pained. He would be feeling the despair coming from Edward. He was not alone in his pain. We all, my Rosie included, were feeling Bella's loss. I couldn't quite wrap my mind around it. The thought that I would never see her again didn't seem possible. I kept expecting her to appear and fix this mess for us. She had fixed it all last time.

It sure as hell needed fixing.

When Alice had the vision of Edward coming to the Volturi, we all raced to the airport, but when she was looking for Edward's future, Alice saw us leaving the castle without Edward. Apparently, if Carlisle came with us, Edward would not live. I didn't understand it, but we had no time to question it. Esme and Carlisle agreed to wait in Washington, while we went to Edward's rescue, if that was the appropriate word. Looking at him now, it seemed more like we had damned him.

"Victoria has been here," Jasper said, drawing deep breaths.

I inhaled too and caught her distinctive scent. I knew it so well, as we had been on alert for weeks, waiting for her to make her move. I had almost got her once but the damn wolves had got in our way. If I had gotten to her then…

"Yes, she came to inform us of the shape-shifters existence," Caius said. "It is through her that we learned of the girl's demise."

The girl? I didn't like that he referred to Bella like that. I had more pressing concerns, though. I had a plan for Victoria, and it involved huge amounts of pain. Me and Rosie were going to track her down and tear her limb from limb. She was going to pay for what she had done to us, to Bella.

"She has been destroyed," he said, cutting into my thoughts. "We learned of her lax control of her newborns, and she was judged to be guilty of exposing our secret. The sentence was carried out yesterday."

She was dead!

My mind reeled. I had set everything on avenging Bella, but I was too late. I didn't know what to do now. How were we supposed to go back to our normal lives when Bella was gone and Edward was lost?

We would have to help him. There had to be a way of getting him through this that didn't involve destroying him. Bella wouldn't have wanted that. She would be so angry if she could see him back here.

"I would like to repeat my invitation, Edward," Aro said. "And to extend the same to you all. I understand your loss is great, but perhaps you can find solace here with us. Keeping the peace may help appease your grief."

Edward didn't speak; he just shook his head, still staring at the floor.

Alice took Jasper's hand in her own presenting a united front. "Thank you for the offer, but we will have to decline," she said.

"And you Emmett, Rosalie?"

I was momentarily struck dumb. What possible use could he have for us? I was strong, but I could see two other vampires that looked equally, if not more, muscular. As for my Rosie, she had no gift that he could want. I didn't understand why he would want us. It didn't matter anyway; there was no way we were going to be joining them. We had a family that needed us.

"I don't think so, but thanks for the invite." I tried to sound grateful rather than confused.

"Very well. Then I shall bid you farewell. I shall have our jet readied to take you home."

"That's a kind offer, but we have made arrangements," Alice said.

It was the first I'd heard of it. We had come here on a commercial flight, and, as far as I knew, that was how we were getting home. If she was saying otherwise, I wasn't going to argue the point. I was just glad we were getting out of here safe, and apparently, without having our thoughts read.

Rosalie took my hand, and we followed Alice and Jasper towards the door. It took me a moment to realize Edward wasn't with us. I turned back and saw him standing where I had left him when I helped him to his feet.

I went back to him and braced an arm around his shoulder. "Come on, bro," I said in a forced light tone. "Let's get you home."

He did not reply, but he allowed me to lead him out of the room and through the halls.

I wondered how we were going to get back up through the drain if he wasn't walking on his own, but we were met with another guard in the reception area, and he informed us that he would show us out of the city.

We were led into tunnels again, but these were not the same as the sewer entrance we had used before. They were better kept and thick with the scent of our kind. This was apparently the exit they usually used. We came out in the tower of an old church.

"You would do well to keep your coven from the city again," the guard said as he left us. "My masters were sympathetic to your plight today, but if you test them, you will find they are not always this merciful."

There was something else in his expression that made me suspicious, but when I opened my mouth to question him, Rosalie shook her head. I snapped my mouth shut again and kept quiet as Alice thanked him for his help and said goodbye.

The church was empty which was lucky, but it meant there were no cars for us to appropriate either. We had left the stolen sedan in the city.

"We'll have to go on foot," Alice said. "This cloudy spell will only last a little while, so we better hurry.

Bracing my arm around Edward, I followed her out into the Italian countryside.

Edward remained unresponsive though the journey to the airport. I was worried that we were going to run into trouble at the airport if he went around looking drugged, but he roused himself long enough to deal with security. Once we boarded the plane, he slumped into his seat and turned his attention to the window, seeming oblivious to all that was happening around him.

Alice closed her eyes and a familiar bank expression came over her face as she searched out the future.

"They're going to leave us alone," she said as she opened her eyes again. "Our futures are still clouded, but I can see the Volturi, and they have no intention of coming for us again."

"Why would they come after us?" I asked. "If they wanted to hurt us, they would have done it while we were there."

Alice sighed heavily. "We were very lucky to get out of there at all. If he had read my thoughts…" She shook her head.

"Lucky?" Edward croaked, turning from the window to face her. "Bella is dead, my life is over, and yet I am forced to keep living it. What in that constitutes luck?"

"Bella is dead," Alice said, her voice breaking as she spoke. "And I loved her. I loved her so much it is physically painful for me to think about it. It is all I can do to stop myself from throwing myself into the same pit of despair that has taken you. But I can't, because one of us needs to keep the rest of our family alive."

"What do you mean?" Rosalie demanded. "What's happening to us?"

"They are playing with us," she said. "They knew before Victoria got there what had happened. Alec was the one that froze Esme and Edward when they were going after Bella. For all I know they watched her… watched it happen."

"But why would they do that?" I asked. I hadn't given much thought to how we found Esme and Edward. Everything else that had happened pushed it from my mind.

"I don't know," she said. "But they did it."

"Maybe because she knew too much," Jasper suggested. "You said Caius wanted to kill Bella when she was here before; perhaps he ran out of patience. They couldn't be seen to break their own rules so they left someone else to do the job for them."

"I killed her," Edward said mournfully. "I should have changed her straight away."

He was right; we waited too long to change her. It should have been done the minute we took the vote in March. Hanging around for graduation was a stupid idea. She was going to have to disappear eventually.

"We all have some portion of blame to accept for what has happened," Rosalie said. "If I hadn't made the call in March, you would never have come to Volterra. If the Volturi hadn't known about Bella, they wouldn't have interfered today. If the wolves hadn't blocked Alice's sight, she would have known what was happening. If Jasper hadn't tried to drain her, you wouldn't have left. The blame goes so many ways it cancels itself out. The only thing we can do now is live our lives and try to make them count for something. "

"I can't," Edward said desperately. "I can't live without her. Please help me. Someone has to kill me."

I considered the man I called my brother. I could kill him and give him the release he wanted so much, but the thought of losing him as well as Bella was too much to bear. It would tear our family apart. It would hurt my Rosie. I couldn't do that to her. She may come off as indifferent to him and Bella, but I knew she was hurting now as much as the rest of us.

"No!" Alice said fiercely. "You are not going to do that to us. Bella wouldn't want you to—"

He cut her off. "Bella would understand! She wouldn't want me to suffer like this."

"Bella would want you to live," I said quietly. "Bella was all about love and life. She loved Esme enough to risk her life to save her. Rosie is right; we have to live our lives and make them count for something. That's what Bella would want."

He looked into my eye, pleading with me to understand. I did understand, but I couldn't do it.

"I'm sorry, Edward, but I won't do it."

He seemed to collapse in on himself. The fervent light that had shone in his eyes as he begged for death faded. His shoulders hunched over and his hands fell loose into his lap. He looked every bit the shell Marcus had been. It was painful to see him like that, so, coward that I was, I averted my eyes.

Esme was waiting for us when we reached SeaTac. As we made our way out of security and into the main terminal, Esme rushed forward to hug Edward. He let her hold him, but he made no attempt to return the embrace.

"Oh, thank god you're okay," she said fervently. "I was so scared." She released him and embraced us each in turn.

"Where is Carlisle?" Jasper asked.

"He had to stay in town, there were… arrangements to be made and Charlie needed him."

Chief Swan. I hadn't given him a second thought since before the newborn fight. How were we going to explain Bella's death?

"We'll talk about it when we get home," Esme said, leading us out to the parking lot.

She had brought Carlisle's Mercedes and my Jeep was still here from our race to save Edward. Edward got into the Mercedes with Esme, and everyone else piled into the Jeep with me. I didn't know about them, but I needed a short reprieve from Edward and his pain.

We were all grieving for Bella, but our pain felt insignificant when faced with his agony. I felt that I had no right to give into the pain and to grieve openly as I wished to as I still had my mate with me.

I pulled out of the parking lot ahead of Esme and made quick time onto the highway.

"What's going to happen to him, Alice?" I asked.

"I don't know. He isn't making any conscious decisions at the moment; it is like he is on auto-pilot. I can't see anything of him."

I sighed heavily. I had a deep sinking sensation in my chest that was not connected to my grief for Bella. I had a feeling the suffering was only just beginning for our family.

I heard a choking sound from the backseat and turned in time to see Rosalie cover her face with her hands.

"Oh, Rosie," I said miserably. "Please don't cry. I can't bear it when you cry."

"I have to," she choked. "Look at what's happened to us. Bella is dead and I… I was so awful to her. I treated her so foully, and now I'll never get a chance to say sorry."

I couldn't bear to see her cry and not help her. I pulled the jeep into a side road and climbed out. Opening her door, I scooped her into my arms and carried her away into the trees lining the road. She tucked her head under my chin and clung to me. I didn't speak. There was nothing to say that could help her. I just held her and allowed her to express her pain. I could hear soft sobs and soothing words coming from the direction of the jeep and knew Alice and Jasper were in the same position as we were.

Eventually her cries ceased and she was calm again. "I'm sorry," she said, running her hands over her face. "I didn't mean to lose control like that."

"You're hurting," I said simply. "Bella is gone and that hurts us all."

She nodded sadly and allowed me to lead her back to the jeep. Alice was curled up on Jasper's lap. His face was pained as he reacted to her sadness.

I climbed into the driver's seat and pulled out onto the road again. Esme did not share our love for speed, so it didn't take long for us to catch up with her and Edward. I couldn't hear her or Edward speaking, but I hoped her natural calming presence was helping him, even if only a little.

We got back to the house before Esme and Edward. Carlisle was waiting for us. He greeted us all with heady relief and filled us in on what we had missed.

The pack had helped Carlisle fabricate a story about a cliff diving trip gone wrong to explain Bella's death. Charlie Swan was in Forks Community under sedation. When he returned from his weekend fishing with Billy Black and heard the news, he had a complete mental breakdown. Bella's mother was on her way to Forks now.

He was just finishing his explanation when the Mercedes pulled into the garage. Edward came into the house and walked straight up the stairs. I moved to follow him, but Rosalie caught my arms. I could hear the sounds of fabric being handled and then the close of a zip. A moment later, Edward came down the stairs again holding Bella's overnight bag.

"Edward, I know you are suffering, but there are things we need to discuss. Bella—" Carlisle's words were cut off as Edward swung back his fist and punched him on the jaw. Carlisle went sprawling to the ground clutching his face.

Edward bent over him, putting his face close to Carlisle's. "You don't get to speak her name," he snarled. "She didn't matter to you alive, so you don't get to say her name now she is dead."

Esme gasped. "How can you say that? Carlisle loved Bella. We all did."

"No!" Edward straightened and looked her in the eye. The darkness of grief that had swallowed him since Volterra had given way to fury. "He chose to help the wolves instead of my Bella. You don't do that if you love someone. I want death. Do any of you love me enough to save me from this pain?"

"No," Carlisle said sadly. "We love you too much to let that happen."

Edward looked to each of us in turn, and we each shook our heads. Carlisle was right; we loved him too much to let him die.

He nodded. "Very well. You curse me to live, but know this. You may love me, but I hate each and every one of you." He looked down at Carlisle with a look of loathing. "Especially you."

With that, he swung the bag over his shoulder and ran from the house, leaving us staring after him in horror.

Thanks for reading. If you would like a teaser of the next chapter let me know in a review or a PM.

Simaril x