Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.

A/N: This story is rated M for "Might snow, might not. But I know this is rated M; 18 or older only, please."

Playlist song:
http://www . youtube . com/watch?v=R1-j9hEPenM

Ufficio Turistico di Volterra:
http://www . volterratur . it/

Visit our blog for story background, teasers, and other information:
http://fragilefoxes . blogspot . com/

Visit the Twilighted forum to discuss our story:
http://www . twilighted .net/forum/viewtopic . php?f=33&t=7774

Chapter 13: Child Without a Home

Sprawled naked on the living room floor, Bella fought to understand what had just happened. One second, she was facing the ghost of her beautiful boy in the window, and, in another instant, Emmett flung her twenty feet behind him and crashed through the window, running away. Could it be possible that he'd seen the ghost as well? Was the phantom of her love who died so long ago haunting them both now?

Just then, the voice from her waking nightmares stabbed her. "You're going to have to catch me first, monkey man!"

Laced with venom and rage, the voice was still unmistakable. Could ghosts speak?

She jumped to her feet, scrambling for the clothes she and Emmett discarded. Pulling on her jeans, she remembered Emmett ripping her shirt from her body, and she quickly jerked his over her head. Unable to find Emmett's jeans but positive he jumped through the window naked, she grabbed the first pair of his pants she could lay hands on and jumped through the window into the night.

Falling through the air, she was overwhelmed by a scent. It was beautiful boy, all cardamom and pine, almond and honey. Still, something else was intertwined. Blood? But not human blood. Something gamy and wild. Did ghosts have scents?

As her feet fell softly on the pavement, she heard Emmett roar. "Get your jollies spying on people, do you, pervert?"

Running toward the location of the voice and the increasing intensity of the scent, her bare feet lightly touched the pavement. She ran with all the speed of which she was capable, not caring if she was seen. Finally, the scent was so strong it almost suffocated her, and she stopped just in time to see Emmett land a crushing blow that sent the ghost crashing through a brick wall.

Wait, how could a phantom crash through a brick...

Bella hugged herself, trying to keep the horror of reality from ripping her to shreds. She felt a strange pull at the back of her throat as it opened and thick, inky black blood gushed up her throat and out of her mouth onto the cold asphalt of the street. She continued to vomit until her body was wracked with dry heaves. When the retching ceased, she wiped her mouth on Emmett's shirt and looked up to see him pinned on the ground by...she couldn't even think his name. She only knew that, if she didn't stop them, Emmett would hurt him.

Slowly approaching the tangled men, she watched as they both looked up at her. Emmett's burgundy eyes were a mix of fire and concern. The other set of eyes were black-rimmed amber, and she tried not to think of the abomination she knew would cause that color. As she reached them, they parted, Emmett dropping into a defensive crouch and the other scrambling away but still facing her.

His face, even twisted in anger, was the face from her memory. She lifted her hand slightly, wanting to touch the flesh and bone so much she ached. He was real. He was the beautiful boy. He was...

"Edward..."

She felt Emmett move behind her, and she spun to face him. "Emmett, stop this. Now!" He seemed confused as she tossed him his pants, and she shook her head slightly, cutting off any argument.

"Who the hell is the beautiful boy?" Edward snarled.

Her eyes wide, she stared back at him. He'd never heard her call him that. Only Aro had. How did he know?

"Edward," she whispered, moving toward him, her hands outstretched and her fingers longing to touch him. "Is it really? But it can't be…I thought…"

Desperate to feel him and know he was real, she stepped slowly toward him again. He leaned forward very slightly, and, for a brief second, she thought he would come to her. She was wounded when he skittered away and a furious growl rumbled in his chest.

"No, Bel-la." He viciously enunciated the syllables of her name, a name he had never called her. "I don't want your explanations. I'm done with your lies."

She waved off a hissing Emmett, never taking her eyes off Edward. "Please, Edward. Oh, dear God, please..." She was begging Edward to understand she still loved him. She was also begging God to make her understand why she'd lived so long without her mate. When Edward flinched away from her, she felt the painful prick of tears that would never fall. "Oh, please let it be true. You're alive."

Edward grabbed his shirt, twisting it in his hands. "Do you call this alive? You damned me and left me to rot in Hell!"

Taking another step, she longed to hold him and take his anger away. "I'm so sorry, Edward. I wanted to be there when you woke up, to explain. But..."

"But what?" he screamed, his eyes crazed. "You found something better...someone better?" He nodded toward Emmett.

Raising her hands with palms facing him and fingers extended, she shook them, wanting him to stop and listen. "No, no, no. You were dying. Do you remember? I couldn't face eternity without you..."

His eerie laugh cut through her. "You did, though, didn't you, Bel-la?" He continued to use her name as a weapon. "You seem to have faced these years without me just fine."

Remembering the dark time after Aro told her the beautiful boy was dead, she tried to push away the pain, reminding herself he didn't understand. "They told me you were dead. They told me..."

"I offered you a pure heart, and you repaid me with pain and deceit!" Edward's words dripped with agony.

Suddenly, she felt Emmett's strong arms surrounding her, trying to comfort and protect her. She almost allowed herself to sigh until she looked up at Edward. His eyes were completely black, and his teeth were grinding together so hard she could hear it.

Edward tilted his head, his smile evil and empty. "And who is this, Bel-la? Your new toy? Is that how you get off, seducing innocents and then making them monsters like you?"

Emmett's growl vibrated through her entire body. "You don't understand anything, you stupid little boy!" Emmett thundered. "Your pain, my pain when we changed was nothing, nothing compared to what she went through!"

Pushing away from Emmett, Bella walked two steps and collapsed in the street. "O ye of little faith," she muttered, all her strength fading away. "All these years, you never once came for me. You know how I love you, but still you think the worst of me."

His steps, slow and deliberate, pounded across the street toward her. He stopped, and she could see the toes of his shoes as he stood over her. "Was it unpleasant for you, Bel-la? The change, was it painful? Did a monster take your life without your permission?" He crouched down over her, and the hair on the back of her neck stood as she felt his breath there. "Well, guess what, fair maiden? You're no better than the monster that changed you. You're worse."

Never moving, she heard the beautiful boy run away, Emmett screaming obscenities after him. She did not worry that Emmett would pursue Edward. Unlike Edward, Emmett would not leave her here like a dog in the middle of the street.

She was haunted by Edward's black eyes, full of hate and contempt, piercing her as his beautiful mouth spewed acrimony. He called her a monster. He compared her to the man who changed her and tortured her body and soul. She tried to explain, but he wouldn't listen.

He didn't care why she changed him.

He didn't care why she left him.

He didn't care that she thought she'd lost him forever.

He didn't care that she loved him.

He didn't care, because he didn't love her anymore. The realization left her cold and empty, and she lay in the wet, grimy street, praying that the same God who'd seen fit to take away Edward's love would see fit to take away her pain as well.

Shattering into a million pieces was the one thing her shield could not protect.

Her heart.

~*~

When Emmett carried Bella back to the loft, she was limp in his arms. Her eyes were open and unfocused, and she didn't speak. Walking quickly, he made it back to their home just as the sun rose on the horizon. Gingerly toting her through the door, he walked to the bedroom and, crushing shards of glass under his feet, sat with her on the bed. Wanting to sooth away her pain, he cradled her as she rocked back and forth, chanting.

"He hates me. He hates me. He hates me." Her painful dirge was unceasing.

His instinct told him to do whatever it took to make her happy, even if it meant finding the evil bastard that put her in this state. He brushed her hair from her face and smoothed it down before kissing her gently on the forehead. "Don't worry, baby. We'll get him back, I swear."

She continued to rock and repeat the three words that seemed to rend her soul. Emmett finally laid her on the bed, and her unseeing eyes gazed off into the distance. As she lay unchanging, he swept the glass from the floor, and, even though the cold air would not harm them, found an old moving box and taped it over the gaping hole that was once the window.

Her clothes were filthy from the street, and her hair was disheveled and matted. Emmett carefully undressed her, and, using a damped washcloth, gently cleaned her skin. When he was finished, he dressed her in a soft, loose sweater and jeans. Grabbing a hairbrush, he lifted and moved her until she was nestled between his legs, her back against his chest. He slowly pulled the brush through her long mahogany locks, careful not to yank the tangles and knots, forgetting it would not hurt her. Once her hair again fell freely, he held her, whispering words of love and dedication and promises to bring the beautiful boy back to her.

When they had not fed for 24 hours, Emmett knew he would have to leave her and hunt on his own. His sustenance was not his main concern; he knew Bella fed very little during the first hunt together, and he was sure he smelled regurgitated blood on the street where they confronted Edward. As much as he did not want to leave her alone, he would die before he let her waste away. He'd only hunted once, but Bella had been the perfect instructor. He was sure he could manage on his own, this one time.

Several hours later, he drug an unconscious man through the loft. Dropping him at the side of the bed, Emmett grabbed his arm and thrust it under Bella's nose. "Drink!" he commanded.

When she didn't move, he scratched a small tear into the man's arm, waving the newly drawn blood in her face. "Goddamn it, Bella, drink...for me."

Her eyelids fluttered, and she looked at him sadly before finally sinking her teeth into the man's wrist. Emmett sighed in relief as she took three large gulps before giving up and letting the arm fall from her mouth.

It's not much, but it's a start.

Quickly draining the man, Emmett left long enough to dispose of the body.

Sitting at the foot of the bed, he spent several hours watching his strong, beautiful sire lie still, all the fire gone from her eyes, the will drained from her body. He wondered if this was how she managed to exist through the horrible things her own sire had done to her. He then remembered what she said she'd done.

"I knew this was my chance to end it all, and I lowered my shield."

Suddenly, he knew what her giving up like this would lead to. They were not mates, but they were something...something important. He would never let her be harmed, and he would never let her harm herself. Horrified, he jerked her from the bed and held her tightly, stroking her hair and murmuring "no" again and again.

He didn't know how to help her until he remembered who had saved her from her sire: Aro. Holding her limp body by her shoulders, he shook her, pleading.

"Baby, where is your phone? I need your phone. Please tell me where it is." Her head lolled back, and her body moved like a rag doll. Remembering he couldn't hurt her, he shook her with more force, screaming his questions at her.

Finally, she raised her head slightly and whispered. "You broke it...me...against the wall...now leave me alone..."

Pulling her back into the cradle of his arms, Emmett struggled to understand her, but he finally realized what she meant. "Shit, Bella, it broke when I threw you against the wall? Fuck, I've got to find my stuff...I had a phone with my old clothes."

He ran to the chiffarobe and, flinging the right door open, began ripping clothes from their hangers. Unable to find his original clothes, he flung open the left door and noticed two drawers at the bottom. Opening the first drawer, he found the contents of his pants pockets. He chuckled at Bella's keeping his Nordstrom name tag and smiled widely when he saw his PDA phone hiding in the back behind his wallet.

Pulling up Google on the tiny phone web browser, Emmett struggled to remember the name of the country where Bella said the Volturi were based. He was sure searching for "Volturi" would be pretty useless, but maybe a tiny town would have someone there who could help him. He was sure Bella, in her current state, would not rattle the phone number off for him.

He knelt at the side of the bed, tenderly resting his hand on her cheek. "Baby, I need you to tell me how to find Aro. Where is he, Bella? Tell me."

"Italy...Volterra...please...leave me," she muttered, never making eye contact.

Struggling as he always had with his large thumbs on the tiny PDA keyboard, Emmett was finally able to type the name into the search box. Finding the number of the Ufficio Turistico di Volterra, he decided to take a chance. Surely, he thought, if the Volturi controlled the town, he would simply have to ask for the man by name. Dialing, the seconds he waited for an answer were the longest seconds of his newborn existence.

When a friendly female voice with a thick Italian accent appeared on the other end, he swallowed hard before speaking. "Yes, I need to find an Aro there, please."

"Signore, I am sure I do not know..."

A red haze descended over everything, and he struggled not to crush the tiny phone in his hand. "Look, don't fuck with me lady. I'm sure you know exactly who I'm talking about. Tell him it's about Isabella. Tell him it's an emergency."

The phone fell silent, and he was sure she'd hung up on him. Just as he was about to disconnect, a smooth, male Italian voice sang from the earpiece. "Is this Bella's protector?"

"Yes, it is. Emmett." He suddenly realized his little stunt might cost him more than the loss of good will with the poor woman at the tourism office.

"Emmett, if I did not love her like a daughter, I would order you destroyed right now." His voice was calm, no hint of anger in his voice. "Did she see Edward?"

Taken aback, Emmett stuttered. "Y-y-yes, but how..."

"Never mind that now." Aro's voice was now filled with sorrow and, Emmett thought, regret. "How is she?"

Sitting next to her on the bed, Emmett ran his free hand lovingly over her arms and shoulders. "She has barely moved in almost 36 hours. She's stopped chanting, though. And I had to force her to feed."

Aro sighed loudly. "I did try to call...to warn her." He paused for a moment. "This happened, before, when I told her he'd died."

Emmett thought briefly about Aro's words. He knew Edward was on his way, but he didn't want to talk about how he knew. He'd been the one who told her Edward was dead, but he didn't seemed shocked that Edward was alive. Clenching his hand into a tight fist, Emmett waited until his anger over what he now knew Aro had done crested before speaking again. "How long was she like this then?"

"Two years."

"Two years?" Emmett howled. "I can't let her stay like this for two years! Not when she did nothing wrong!" He knew the next thing he said would either help Bella or end him. "Sir, if you love her, you have to tell her what you've done. It's the only way to help her."

"Emmett," Aro said, warily, "I thought I was doing what was best. I wasn't trying to hurt her. I was trying to protect her."

Hearing the pain in Aro's voice, Emmett understood his intent better than anyone. "I know, Sir. But it has hurt her, and I need you to help me make this right."

"Put me on speaker. Let me talk to her."

Emmett pressed the two buttons to turn on the cell's speaker and laid it next to Bella's head. "Baby, Aro is on the phone. He wants to talk to you."

Unmoving, she continued to stare at nothing.

"Bella, dearest Bella," Aro crooned adoringly, "speak to me, please."

Bella's eyes shifted right to left before finally settling on the phone beside her. Her fingers petted the phone as if it were her surrogate father's hand. "Aro, help me."

"Tell me, my child, tell me how to help you."

Wrapping her arms around her knees, she pulled them into her chest. Watching, Emmett was worried she was retreating into herself again. But suddenly she spoke, her voice strong and clear.

"Please, Aro, destroy me."