Twilight: Creation

Chapter Four

Finding Silvia in Rome was much more difficult than Aro anticipated. The city was growing, spreading and twisting out into the Italian countryside. As he wandered through the serpentine streets of the capital, it only encouraged him of the decision he and his brothers had made in settling in Volterra. It would have been next to impossible for a coven their size to hide in the ever expanding Rome. Volterra's fortified walls cut the city off from expanding any further. Their castle like home under the clock tower would never be discovered unless the city fell.

He found the building Silvia had told him about a couple weeks prior, but the window that should have been hers was dark and closed. Aro frowned. Did she forget him that quickly? His hope at seeing her again quickly faded into anger with a tinge of worry. Had her father discovered their, for lack of better word, relationship? Whatever had happened between them was something that surpassed words. Perhaps she had fallen ill and couldn't see him. He could debate and rationalize all night but that would get him no answers. The hour was late and the night was moonless so no one should see him as he climbed the trellis up to her room.

The window was unlocked and he quickly slipped inside the room. Silvia was not there though her scent was. She had been there in the past two weeks but that comforting scent that was hers alone was faded. Her bed was unmade, the blankets and sheets twisted from restless sleep. He ran a hand over her pillow, inhaling deeply at what was left of her fragrance. A slightly odd tang of salt was present...tears. She had been crying and that lessened the anger but increased the worry.

Her armoire was still partially filled with clothes, though there were some gaps. Whoever packed did it very quickly and quite messily. It didn't make any sense. He had listened on the street earlier today, had even seen her father, and no one mentioned anything about a family crisis or an illness. From an observer's perspective, the Moretti family was a healthy, happy family. So why the disastrous state of Silvia's bedroom? Aro heard footsteps coming towards the door and stepped into the shadows.

The door opened and a maid entered quietly, not quite shutting the door behind her. Aro watched the young woman, no older than fifteen, start to open drawers in Silvia's nightstand. A red haze of anger clouded his eyesight as he watched the girl pocket shiny things such as earrings, bracelets and necklaces. When she neared the armoire, Aro stepped out of the shadows.

"Good evening, my dear."

She emitted a high squeak but preservation quickly silenced the noise. She knew what would happen to her if the master of the house found her pilfering his daughters belongings. "Who are you?" she asked, her heart hammering so hard Aro was having a hard time concentrating.

"I am a friend of Signorina Moretti."

The girl's fear quickly subsided. "So, you are the one."

Confusion won over bloodthirst. "What do you mean?"

The maid opened the armoire and started unabashedly going through the clothes. Whatever it was, she believed there was some secret camaraderie between them now. "Master Moretti sent his daughter away because she is with child."

The battle was over before it even started. Curiosity had lost to anger and the maid's dead body hit the floor before Aro even realized he had moved. The words "with child" echoed around his skull like a swarm of angry bees. She had lied to him. There was someone else, another suitor, she had been entertaining at the same time she had captured whatever had been left of his heart. A human woman had played him for a fool and won the game.

"Rome?" Sulpicia frowned. "Whatever could be in Rome?"

"He went to a politician's home, my lady," Demetri said. "A Signor Moretti."

Sulpicia pulled her cloaked closer around her body. The early morning was damp, though it had no physical effect on her, the feeling seemed to permeate her being. "Did Aro have any conversations with Signor Moretti?"

It was Demetri's turn to frown. "No, Ma'am. He did kill a maid though. It would have thrown the household in a uproar but I disposed of the body before it was found."

"A maid?" This was most unlike Aro. If he had gone to a prominent politician's home in Rome, it most certainly would have nothing to do with a mere maid. "Does this politician have a wife?"

"His wife is deceased. She died many years ago of a fever."

"What about a daughter?"

"Yes, Ma'am. He does have a daughter, Silvia."

Sulpicia fought the growl that was growing in her chest. "Was the daughter present at the home last night?"

"No Ma'am. I overheard some of the maids saying that she was sent away a few days ago. She was in an," Demetri paused, "indelicate condition."

A strange feeling of satisfaction filled Sulpicia. If Aro's interest had been in Silvia, then it served him right. The trespasser had been trespassed against. Justice had come to her aid and she didn't have to lift a finger. "Thank you, Demetri. I appreciate your loyalty in this matter."

"It is my pleasure, my lady. Would you like me to continue trailing him should he leave again?"

Sulpicia thought for a moment. Disloyalty was a crime Aro refused to let go unpunished. If this woman had betrayed him in any way, he would require payment. However, his fascination with this woman was very surprising to her. "Yes, Demetri. If he leaves Volterra again without an escort, follow him."

Fate may had sided with her this night but there was still a chance she no longer knew her husband or what he was capable of doing.

Aro spent two months in a haze of hurt and fury. Marcus regarded him out of the corner of his eye with quiet understanding while Caius seemed to appreciate the new, violent side to Aro's dealings. There were good things that came out of his anger. For one, there was no mercy shown to anyone who came before the trio of brothers which only instilled more fear in the vampire community. Secondly, the animal eating Carlisle finally had enough of the viciousness one week into Aro's temper tantrum and left. Aro didn't know where the golden eyed vampire had gone but he did try to wish the strange immortal his best. No sense in burning bridges if there was no need.

The other good thing that came out of his discovery was Sulpicia seemed much more content now that his nights were spent with her again. However, after two months of being around her and her labyrinthine mind, he yearned for the simplicity of Silvia. Her deception still angered him but once again his curiosity was starting to override his smarted ego. He knew her thoughts, better then she knew them herself. At no time did she have disloyalty in her mind. There was so much that was not making sense. By the time the moon rose on the beginning of the third month, he decided to return to Rome.

He was shocked by the change that had come over the Moretti household. Most of the windows were darkened, the home was silent and an uneasiness came over him. He went into Silvia's room again but the atmosphere was different. Someone had come in and made the bed up as well as straightening the rest of the room. There was a staleness in the air, there was...no life present anymore. The uneasiness was becoming stronger and Aro quickly left the room. He took to pacing around the perimeter of the home, waiting for something, anything to change in silent building. Finally, one of the maids came outside, most likely going home for the night.

"Pardon me, Signora."

The maid jumped and her hand instinctively clutched a pendant around her neck. Aro smiled. A cross was in her withered hand. How quaint.

"My apologies, I did not mean to frighten you."

She frowned disapprovingly at him but didn't relinquish the hold on her cross. "What can I do for you, Signore?"

"The young woman who lived in this house, where is she now?"

The old woman clutched her cross tighter and made the sign of the cross in her free hand. "She is with the angels now, Signore."

He was thankful his heart had already stopped beating. "What do you mean?"

"A little over a month ago, Signorina Moretti gave birth to a devil child." The old woman cursed in Italian and spit on the ground. "The fiendish little thing ripped its way out of her. We tried to save her but the damage was too great. She begged us, the nuns and maids, that we would care for the child." She spit again on the ground. "Thank God for nuns. I wanted to drown the thing but they took the demon into their church. Let God deal with it, that is what I say."

There were only a few churches in Rome that would have the resources to care for a child in secrecy. Aro thanked the old woman for her help before promptly dispatching her. After the body was drained and hidden at a safe distance from the city limits, he doubled back and headed for the nearest church. The idea of wiping out the nuns and priests did not sit well with him. He would have to settle for merely observing the child for a few days before devising a plan concerning the clergy. He didn't want to think about Silvia right now. Her loss left him with a feeling he couldn't explain. As he passed by the outer wall of the churchyard, he could hear movement on the other side. He found a loose rock and pulled it out of the wall. When he peered through the space, he froze.

A child, who looked to be about three years old, was playing in the small fountain. Her black hair was curly, the exact curls of Silvia. Her skin seemed to glow in the moonlight and she moved with far more grace than any human should have. But the curl in the hair was the only thing reminiscent of Silvia. Aro had to lean against the wall for support. It couldn't be...it just couldn't. Then, she laughed, a peal of tiny bells.

"Get that child out of the fountain!" someone shouted.

Aro watched as a young nun hurried out into the courtyard, a blanket in her hand. "My apologies, Ma'am. She is just so quick-"

"I do not care how fast she is," came the snappish reply. "Get control of her."

The younger nun wrapped the blanket around the dancing child and pulled her out of the water. "Whatever are you doing, child?"

"I wanted to play in the water and sing the song that you taught me." The child's diction was perfect, her voice was smooth and lilting.

The nun dried the child off. "How about you dance around the fountain instead and sing your song?"

She seemed to consider this and bobbed her head. "Very well."

Once the child was sufficiently dry, she was released to continue her dance. She skipped around the cobblestone courtyard, lingering water droplets falling from her hair. In her pitch perfect voice, she began singing.

"Ring around the rosie, pocket full of posie-"

Aro shoved the loose rock back into the wall and quickly left the church. No matter how fast he moved, he couldn't get away from the child before the eerie phrase reached his ears.

Ashes, ashes, we all fall down.

Then he realized what that feeling was when he learned of Silvia's death...fear.

"A child?"

"Yes, Ma'am."

Sulpicia's mind was running in circles. Demetri had brought her good, though confusing, news that evening. This Silvia Moretti had passed away two months ago in childbirth so that distraction had been dealt with by Fate herself. But now a conundrum. How did a child come into play in this matter?

"Are you certain that this child was Silvia Moretti's?"

Demetri shifted from one foot to another. "I know it does not make sense, my lady, but yes, I do."

"But you said yourself the child looks to be at least three years old. Surely this can not be the child that caused Signorina Moretti's death."

"There is much about the child that is...irregular, my lady."

Sulpicia gazed out at the dawn tinged city of Volterra. "What are these irregularities then?"

Demetri's eyes shifted to the floor. "I was able to speak to one of the nun's that has been caring for the child. She was able to tell me that the child grew rapidly, in both size and intelligence. She speaks on the same level as an adult, had memorized the first five books of the Old Testament and can sing full arias in perfect pitch."

"Is she," Sulpicia swallowed, "like us at all?"

Demetri nodded his head. "Her skin is virtually impenetrable. She has a full set of teeth but is not venomous."

"How do you know this?"

"The nun admitted to being bitten when the child first arrived."

Sulpicia nodded, knowing better than to ask what happened to the nun. "But you said she has a heartbeat and blood?"

"Yes, Ma'am. She survives on human food though she seems to crave blood."

She could only imagine what was going through Aro's mind right now. The possibilities of being able to father children that had the best of both worlds: a soul, heart and the powers of a vampire, would be too great for him to leave alone. This very well could take her husband away from her forever. And what of Athenodora? If Aro told Caius of this possibility, both wives could be dispatched quite easily as they paraded human wives in and out of Volterra. If their lives were spared, their pride most certainly would be sacrificed as a harem would be created. "What is Aro going to do with this mess now?"

Demetri cleared his throat. "If I may offer my opinion, my lady?"

Sulpicia nodded her head. After everything he had done for her so far, the tracker deserved at least to be heard. "Go ahead."

"I do not think Master Aro will pursue this possibility. It is my belief he will observe the child's development and then destroy her. I do not think he will want anyone, especially Marcus, to see or even know about the child's existence."

"What makes you think that?"

Demetri shifted his weight again, suddenly nervous. When he spoke, it was barely a whisper. "The child looks like Didyme."

Author's Note: I know I crammed a lot of action into this chapter and I do realize some of it contradicts what was said in Breaking Dawn (the knowledge of vampire/human hybrids, Aro acting as if it was the first time he had seen one and so on). It will be addressed and explained throughout the story, but I am aware of the contradictions. Thank you so much for reading and an extra heap of thanks for leaving a review!