Cullen's Hound
Disclaimer: SM has the privilege of owning Twilight.
Ch. 4: All Roads Lead to Volterra
CPOV
David Carson and his team had proved remarkably efficient. They arrived at our home an hour after we had returned from the hospital. Bella had clutched desperately at my daughter Rosalie and hadn't wanted to let her go, so Rose stayed behind to comfort the human. She had already spent the night with the girl by the time the rest of us arrived to meet her. From her reception when I walked through the hospital room door, I knew my wife and other children were correct in their assumptions; Rosalie had indeed found her Soul Mate in Bella Swan. If the human's actions proved that the bond formed both ways, they just had yet to realize it.
Carson had shown up with three other associates, two men and a woman. The woman held a six-month-old, slate grey, Irish wolfhound puppy. She explained that the dog, Cu, still needed more training to be a service dog but Bella would take care of that. Terry, the woman, would stop by once every other week to check on the dog's progress. We were all surprised to learn that Bella trained quite a few of their service dogs.
Carson and the two others were hunched over the table looking over the blueprints to our home with my wife, Esme. Because we wanted things ready for Bella when we brought her home, there was no time for a full renovation. One of the other men suggested to Carson they install something he called a "Banshee."
David explained that the "Banshee" connected to the doorbell and the phone jack. When someone rang the bell or called, it sent signal to a receiver worn by Bella that would vibrate in a different manner depending on which one it was. It could also be hooked up to a security system. The installation had taken less than ten minutes and our guest were on their way back to their office in Seattle.
Esme, Alice and Emmett had gone out to buy the furniture for Bella's new room. Dina and Jasper had gone hunting, and I decided to review Charlie's journal, that I had taken from the Swan house last night, one last time. David Carson had said the Chief had kept detailed notes and that was what bothered me. Nothing in this journal had been detailed. It contained generalizations and veiled references that were never explained. He had obviously meant this to be a smoke screen to keep anyone from finding the real journal.
A knock at the door interrupted my musings. I opened it and Sgt. Jason Rayburn of the Forks Police Department was on the other side. His expression told me this was not official business, but important all the same. I motioned for him to come inside but he just shook his head.
"Charlie told me that if anything happened to him, that you would need this," the Officer said gruffly as he handed me a rewritable computer disk.
I took it from and thanked the man then watched as he fled by to his cruiser. For a human, Charlie Swan seemed to have anticipated this. I flashed up to my study then placed the disk into my laptop. A window opened on the screen and demanded a password. Inspiration struck as my eyes watched the screen. I typed in the name of Charlie's ex-wife. The screen went blank for a moment then a video file opened. Chief Swan looked like he hadn't had a decent nights sleep in a long time.
"Dr. Cullen, if you're watching this then I'm gone and The Network might be compromised. If a breach hasn't occurred, somebody will contact you within twenty-four hours of receiving this disk. I know all about you and your kind. A mutual friend told me that you and your family only drink animal blood, so I'm entrusting the safety of my daughter and children like her to your care. There is not much time and too much information to pass on, most of which is contained in the documents that follow.
"When Bella was nine, we went to Europe on vacation. Volterra, Italy, to be precise, for St. Marcus' Day; unwittingly, we joined the special tour of the Castle. Everything about our guide and the tour seemed wrong. I tried to get us out of there but it was too late, we were led into a round stone chamber and the door had been swiftly shut and barred. The vampires descended upon the group before we knew it. In seconds, only Bella and I were left alive. Our tour guide was about to attack my daughter, but stopped when she got within inches of her.
"She told a dark haired demon that sat on one of three thrones that Bella was a cripple then walked away. The man she had spoken to rose from his throne and approached me. He told me his name was Aro and if I valued my life, I would never tell a soul about vampires, or interfere with their business. Otherwise, they'd kill me then sell Bella to a brothel in some God-forsaken country. I didn't care about myself, but to keep my daughter safe, I made a deal with the Devil.
"As the years went on, I learned that that was not my first encounter with the Volturi, nor was it my last. During the early days of my marriage, my wife, Renee, had gone to Los Angeles to take experimental fertility treatments because she had been told she couldn't have children. The treatments were genetic manipulation on a large scale with one purpose; the creation of gifted children. It was directly responsible for Bella's condition.
"Your predecessor, Dr. Thompson, obtained one of Renee's unused samples. He learned that it was a cocktail of various fertility drugs in a matrix of diluted vampire venom. After my wife left, the two of us traced the drug to its source, a research facility funded by a grant from the Italian Scientific Trust. The Trust, we learned, was based out of none other than Volterra, Italy. During our search, we came to the attention of The Network; a group of humans that learned of your world and vampires that attempted to keep the Volturi's ambitions in check by hiding children like Bella. Thankfully, they think their science project was a failure.
"Two years ago, during a routine traffic stop, I stumbled into a human trafficking ring. Using the resources unavailable to Law Enforcement, the trail once more led back to Volterra. In fact, The Network learned that just about all human trafficking rings lead back to Volterra. As much as I love my little girl, I couldn't let the bastards continue to get away with it. If just one of the ring leaders rolled over, I hoped to cripple the Volturi by taking out as many as possible.
"Should you choose not to get involved, I wouldn't blame you. Just eject this disk and give it and my daughter to the person that contacts you. Bella will be taken to live with my lover. If you choose to take up this burden, know that you will not stand alone. Thank you for watching this and if you could do me one last favor, kiss my baby and tell her I love her," the image of Charlie Swan testified then the window closed.
I stared in shock at the blank screen and waited for the rest of the contents to display on the computer screen. Aro had always been a touch off but what I just heard was full scale insanity. The Volturi existed to give order to our world and insure we stayed hidden from the humans. Now, their very actions threaten us with exposure. I was livid that my once trusted friends could do such abominable things.
When Charlie Swan's corpse had been wheeled into the hospital, I had smelled vampire on him. The scent had seemed familiar at the time and after watching that video I knew why. It belonged to Felix Volturi. My mind conjured up an image of Chief Swan's last moments. He had known they would come for him so at the crash site he made one last deal with the Devil; his life for his daughter's.
In a fraction of a second, I made my choice. I would join this Network and together we would keep Bella and those like her safe and continue to gather information. When the time was right, we would strike. I only hoped I got to Aro before the Insider did. My vampire mind had quickly deduced that the only way The Network had survived this long was if there was somebody inside the Volturi that kept it safe.
"Those Italian fucks won't hurt my mate, Carlisle," Rosalie said from the door way. One of her hands shot up to her mouth as her brain caught up with what she had said. I had not heard her come home.