Disclaimer: Most of these characters belong to Steph Meyer's! I only wish I could create such beloved characters.

A/N: Wow! Thanks for all the advice concerning Bella's assignment and all the lovely comments. What a pick me up. And I'd like to welcome a new reader- Joanna11! I love hearing from new people. Thanks so much for your review. Alright, some more Bella… and beware there's another Edward phone call…

Chapter 31 The Assignment Part 2

The sun gleamed through the bedroom window in a bright line across my face. Santiago was reclining in a chair pulled close to the bed with his feet stretched across my bed and a newspaper blocking his face from view. Christian was pacing back and forth, his nervous energy pulsing off of him.

"What happened?" I croaked, clearing my throat, which was burning something fiercely and tried again. "How'd I get back here, where's the vampire?"

Santiago folded his paper on his lap and Christian joined me on the bed. "You healed Brent and he is staying with Felix for the time being," Santiago replied with an amused smile on his lips.

"You scared the hell out of me, Bella," Christian muttered giving my shoulders a little shake while his eyes bore into mine. "You have been unconscious for two days now."

"Oh." Two days? Wow. I was suddenly worried and couldn't figure out why. There was something that I was supposed to do, but whatever it was it eluded me.

"So would you care to tell me why you risked your so precious life to save a vampire we were told to destroy?" Santiago asked, his eyes shining with laughter.

"Uh…well, I don't think he deserves to die just because he fell in love."

"Bella, we were given very specific instructions. Kill or transform the family and destroy Brent. We are not judge, jury, and executioner. We are simply the executioner."

"Have you been in contact with Aro while I was unconscious?" I asked. Aro might take the news better if it came directly from me. Yes, hearing about my failure from anyone else would be a very bad thing.

Christian answered shooting a stern glance at Santiago. "No, I asked them to hold off until you were better."

"Good. I'll call him and see if I can convince him to give Brent a reprieve."

"And what of the girl and her family?" Santiago asked, his amused mask wavering and a trickle of concern peeked through. "Are you going to let them go, as well? If you fail, Aro will see you punished."

"No, we're going to take the family back to Volterra and someone there can change them. I just don't see why Brent should die if we're going to change his girlfriend."

"If anyone could disobey a direct order, I guess it would be you. But I suggest you confer with him first. He might listen to reason as long as it comes from your luscious lips," he smirked and returned to his newspaper.

"Go check on Felix, Santiago. I need a moment with Bella. Alone."

He tossed the paper on the edge of my bed and closed the door softly. Christian pulled me roughly against him, his lips roaming over every inch of my upturned face. "I was so afraid, Bella. So afraid. Don't ever do that again. Not for some stranger." He brought his mouth down to mine and kissed me ever so gently, then clutched me firmly against him as he stroked my hair. "You've become so important to me, love. I don't know what I'd do if I lost you," he sighed.

We remained like that for a few minutes, both lost in our thoughts. It felt so right having his arms around me, and his lips burning against my flesh brought my body to life. It was taking all of my self control to not act on those feelings. Instead I concentrated on Edward. "Shit!" I exclaimed and pulled away from Christian who just looked inquisitively at me. "I was supposed to call Edward back at two to discuss the war with the Volturi," I groaned. He was going to be very angry with me and most likely accuse me of doings things, that so far, I'd only fantasized about.

"Call him now-"

"What the hell am I supposed to tell him, Christian? He doesn't know about this assignment and he's going to assume that I got so caught up with you that I couldn't be bothered to call him," I groaned.

Christian handed me the phone. "Maybe it is time that you were completely honest with him, Bella. About the Volturi, the assignment, and me."

I stared at him wide eyed, my mouth hanging open.

He traced his fingers along my jaw and closed my mouth for me before planting a chaste kiss on my lips. "Call him. I will give you some privacy."

Edward picked up on the first ring. "Where are you?" He demanded. "Alice had a vision that you were hurt."

"I'm fine Edward."

"So Alice's vision was wrong?" He asked doubtfully. "Then why didn't you call me sooner?"

"I swear that I am not hurt, Edward. I had to use a lot of my healing powers and it drained me. I was unconscious and just woke up today." The burning in my throat was distracting me and only getting worse with each passing minute. I knew that I would have to hunt tonight. I'd gotten kind of used to sipping my animals from a large goblet. Actually chasing down an animal was going to take some getting used to again.

Edward's musical voice pushed my thirst back briefly. "Alice said you weren't in Volterra anymore," he murmured softly. "Why didn't you tell me?"

Damn Christian and his suggestions. But there was no point in denying it. Edward was already aware that I'd left Volterra. I let out a deep sigh before going into the tale about my assignment.

"So, now you are killing for the Volturi? What the hell has happened to you Bella?" His anger lashed out at me through the phone like a jolt of electricity.

Why couldn't we talk anymore? Every time we opened our mouths it ended in another argument. I was so tired of fighting, but not tired enough to give up. Not yet. "Are you not listening to me? I did not kill anyone and I used all the power that I possessed to keep him alive."

"Why would you even agree to take such an assignment? And if you are taking the family back to Volterra to have them transformed then you most certainly are killing someone. You're killing four people to be exact. How can you live with yourself, Bella?" I hated the accusation in his voice, but of course he would see the family being transformed as murder. Hell, he hadn't even wanted to risk my soul, why on earth would I expect him to see what I was about to do as anything less than murder.

"Tell me, what would you have done if you were in my position? Tell me what to do, Edward, please. I don't know how to please both you and Aro."

"It's not about pleasing me. It's about doing what's right for you. If you think there's nothing evil about killing four innocent people, then you are not the woman I thought you were," he said softly, no hint of anger or disappointment.

Not the woman I thought you were. I sat on the bed in a stunned silence. I felt him pulling away from me, felt my heart ripping from my chest as he debated whether he still loved me or not. I shook my head and decided to worry about our disastrous relationship later. "Tell me what to do, Edward, and I'll do it."

"Go back to Volterra and inform Aro that you will not do his dirty work."

"Even if that means that I'm punished?" I asked, remembering how easily Aro had ordered Seline to be tortured for two weeks.

He laughed. "He won't punish you Bella."

"I wish I had your faith, Edward. I really do. But I know things that you do not about Aro, and everything that I know tells me that I will be tortured for failing him and could possibly blow my cover." Though I wasn't all that worried about my cover. I was already debating coming clean and warning them about Virat and the Romanians.

"I thought you were such close friends with Aro. So certain that he was blameless in violating the treaty and now you're telling me that he'd torture you. And I bet you're still going to tell me that we can't go through with our plan because he is innocent. Will you fight for the Volturi against us?" He asked with a hint of sarcastic laughter to his voice.

"You've decided to carry out our original plan, despite my information?" I asked.

"Bella, you have not told me anything concrete. Only your opinion and his lies. Of course we're going through with our plan. In a week, we will arrive and the Volturi will be out of our lives for good. Maybe with them gone, we can get back to normal."

"I hate to break it to you, Edward, but the Volturi are not the cause of our problems," I hissed.

"No, not entirely. We mustn't forget about your feelings for Demetri, and I suspect Christian, as well." he stated coldly.

I closed my eyes. If only he knew how very right he was about Christian. And I did care for Demetri. I'd wished countless times that he was here with me, but though I loved him in some small way, I was not in love with him. Christian, on the other hand, was someone I could fall hopelessly in love with if I hadn't already given my heart to Edward.

"I don't want to fight anymore, Edward. Please, I need you to listen to reason. You, yourself, admitted that Virat is up to something. Is it not more likely that Virat is trying to use our family to destroy the Volturi? Is that really so inconceivable? I am telling you - the Volturi did not break the treaty and we're being set up." He remained stubbornly silent. "You know what? Let me talk to Jasper," I demanded as I became increasingly frustrated with him. Maybe he hadn't even discussed my theory with the Cullens.

"No, I will discuss this with them again, for all the good it will do." He swore softly under his breath. "We will have to fight someone, Bella. Do you understand? The Romanians are not going to stop, they've waited centuries for this moment and they don't care what our reason was for going to war with the Volturi, just that they are finally going to get their revenge. We will either have to fight along side of them and against the Volturi, or with the Volturi against the Romanians."

What a mess. Killing the Romanians was just as bad as killing the Volturi. Both were innocent. Virat was the only one who truly deserved to die, and he would one way or the other, but what about everyone else? Was there truly no way to avoid this battle? And deep down inside, I knew that if push came to shove that I would fight along side my friends. I knew the members of the Volturi and I could no sooner hurt them than I could the Cullens. The Romanians meant nothing to me. I'd never met them. But I did know Maria and her army and Eleazor and Carmen…

"Bella?" Edward prodded gently.

"I'm here. I just don't know how things got so screwed up."

"I know what you mean, love. I'll talk to everyone here. Give me your number and I'll call you back." His tone was actually affectionate for the first time in a while. It made my guilt slash through me. The physical closeness that had developed between Christian and myself was bad, but it was how happy I felt with him that was the true betrayal. That I'd allowed myself to make room for him in my heart. That I'd shoved Edward aside just to make sure there was a piece to give him. I was a horrible person. But I'm not a person. Still, I was married to Edward. Married. And I had to honor that and him. He deserved so much more than this. There was still love here. No matter how mad or disappointed he was in me, he still loved me. Forever.

"No. I'll call you in an hour. If Felix or Santiago answers the phone…no, it's safer if I call you."

"Santiago won't care," Edward stated.

"What do you mean?"

"He's the Romanian brothers' spy and their brother-in-law. He's married to Mia."

"I don't understand."

"Santiago was captured centuries ago and they used Chelsea's power to bind him to the Volturi. After a time they quit using the binding power and believed he remained out of loyalty and duty, but he has been spying on them ever since."

"But that means that he has not even seen his wife in…"

"Yes. You think you've had it bad, dear? Try living a couple centuries apart."

"If you had a spy among the Volturi then why am I here?" I asked. Carlisle demanding that I join the Volturi flashed through my mind. He'd known about Santiago all along, and yet he had still sent me to Volterra. I didn't know whether I was hurt or angry. The only thing I knew for certain was that I thought less of him. Of both of them.

"To collect all of their special powers," Edward admitted.

"Oh, so you both lied to me," I accused.

He was quiet for a minute before cautiously saying, "It was necessary. I did not wish to." When I didn't reply he continued almost frantically. "You've got to believe me. It's why I want us to go our own way once this mess is over."

Go away with him? I stifled a mirthless chuckle. Hell, I wasn't even sure that I wanted any part of that family, Edward included, now that I knew about Santiago and all their lies. What made it worse was that I'd done exactly what they wanted of me. I had collected damn near everyone's powers. They might be able to trick me into their scheme, but they couldn't force me to use my new powers against the Volturi. "One problem at a time, Edward," I muttered. "Find a way to convince them not to align themselves with the Romanians."

"You do realize that the wolves, Carlisle, Esme, and the Denali clan are still with them?" He pointed out.

"You can call them and tell them there's been a change in plans," I said adamantly.

"Call me back in an hour, Bella. I'm not making any guarantees, but I will do my best to convince them." I could still hear him breathing, but he seemed distracted by his thoughts.

"What are you thinking?" I asked him.

"About how much I love you and that I'm losing you," he replied in such a defeated voice. It made my heart ache to hear that tone and that I was the cause, but they used me and lied to me. I couldn't just let that go. "I love you so much, Bella. Even when you make my life very complex. Even when you do things that I don't agree with. I love you more now than ever, and I know that I'm close to losing you," He murmured. "I don't know if I can wait another week to see you, to hold you, to…" he trailed off.

I heard the front door close and Christian's voice as he asked Felix how Brent was doing.

"I'm sorry, I've got to go," I whispered. "Love you." I hung up the phone and joined them in the living room.

"Hey, Felix. You got a number for Aro? I have a couple things I need to talk to him about." He nodded and scrawled a number across my palm. "How's Brent?" I asked uncertainly. I'd done a terrible thing to him and had passed out before I'd seen that he was indeed healed.

"He's perfectly fine, Bella. You saw to that," he chuckled. "What, were you afraid he was getting off too easy with a simple death sentence? You decided that it would be a more fitting punishment to nearly destroy him, heal him, and then kill him again? I didn't realize torture was your thing. Remind me to never piss you off," he snickered. I gave him the look that his words deserved and went back to my room to call Aro.

After much explaining and pleading I got Aro to agree with my assessment, though he did not seem very happy about it. I knew it was a test and that I'd failed, but it was a test that I did not want to pass. It was bad enough that I was still going to take that family back to Volterra and have them transformed. I might not actually be the one to bite them, but in Edward's eyes it was as good as murder. As I was completely happy with my vampire self, I did not agree, but he would always see what I'd done as evil. "Change of plans, boys," I announced as I sat on the end of the couch. Christian draped his outstretched legs over mine and flashed me a beatific smile. "Aro has rescinded his order of death for Brent, but he must accompany us back to Volterra along with the family."
Felix's eyes widened. "I do not know how you managed to sway our so stubborn leader, but I will inform Santiago of this development."

"Great. I also need to meet with the family. At least the girl at some point tonight," I mumbled more to myself than anyone else.

"I am sure that Brent will be able to arrange a meeting between you and Laura as long as he is there to…monitor it," he said as he walked out the door.

"Come here," Christian commanded with a mischievous glint in his eyes. I cuddled against him on the couch reveling in the contentment that his embrace always elicited. "How did your conversation with Edward go?" He traced random designs on my back as I answered.

"Hmm, well, we talked business, that didn't go all that well. He says that we'll either have to fight the Volturi or the Romanians." I glanced up at his topaz eyes. When had they finally turned from red to topaz? I'd somehow missed it. "Did you know that Santiago is a Romanian spy?" I asked in a low whisper.

He shook his head, but didn't seem nearly as troubled by this information as I had been.. Well, at least I wasn't the only one out of the loop, I just seemed far more bothered by it. Was I overreacting? I didn't think so. "What else did you talk about?" He prodded.

"We fought some. Normal occurrence between us these days. He professed his love despite my shortcomings," I prattled on.

Christian hissed. "Your shortcomings? You do not possess any shortcomings that I can see, love."

I smiled against his chest. "You do not know me very well if you can utter that with a straight face," I chuckled.

"If you fight all the time, maybe it's a sign that you two are not meant to be together," he suggested.

I let that thought sink in. It was just too foreign of a concept. Edward and I went together like fake breasts at a strip club. "Maybe. But I don't want to talk about it right now. Let's go see Brent and maybe meet a fully clothed Laura today." I got up and noted the raw burning sensation in my throat which signaled that I'd used too much of my powers and was in dire need of blood. "But first I need to hunt. I'm so hungry I could eat the whole village," I snickered.

Christian shook his head, a smile tugging at his lips. "I noticed. Your eyes are as black as a moonless night. Come," He beckoned as he offered me his arm. "Let us find some scrumptious deer."

Brent was seated by the corner window that looked out over Laura's house. He glanced sharply at us as we entered the villa. Fear flashed across his lovely young face fleetingly, then he smoothed his features into a blank mask. I sat down opposite of him. "Have they explained everything to you?" I asked.

"Yes, señora." He looked down at his hands clasped in his lap and muttered, "I meant no harm. I have not killed a human in five months. I would think that this is reason to be pleased, not something that requires punishment."

I sighed softly. "I agree, Brent. I do. But you know our laws. And they do not permit us to share our secret with humans," I pointed out gently. Personally, I didn't see how Brent having a blood donor who knew about vampires was any different than those humans that worked within Volterra, but I did not make the rules.

"Do dead bodies lying around not attract more attention and risk our secret more than one young girl?" He asked, still avoiding my gaze

"I'm not here to debate with you, Brent. Aro has decreed that you will accompany us back to Volterra as will the entire Lucci family," I said in a firm tone. "Have you not noticed how ill she is, Brent? My goodness. I could see it in the gloom of the night. You have fed on her too much and she is suffering. Why haven't you changed her yet?" I asked, curiosity getting the better of me. Why was it that these damn vampires fell in love with humans, but never wanted to take that last step and transform them?

He raised his furious eyes to mine. "Do you remember the pain of your transformation, señora? Do you?" He demanded, leaning forward, his hands clenched into tight fists. I nodded. "It has been 382 years since I was transformed and I can recall every excruciating moment of it." He relaxed his fists and smoothed them down the length of his jeans. "Surely, you must understand why I have not wished to subject her to that particular brand of torture."

"I was given Morphine. It helped some," I admitted. He raised his eyebrows.

"Do you think the Volturi will allow for the use of modern drugs to ease their pain?" He sounded every bit like the sixteen year old boy he was when he died.

"I will suggest it to Aro. He is not an unreasonable man, Brent. I'm sure that we can work something."

He nodded, but looked like he was far away as he stared sightlessly out the window back at the house. "She comes from a very religious family, señora. I am not all together certain that they will wish to be transformed," he whispered sadly.

"Then they will die," Felix declared from across the room. He moved forward and leaned against the back of my chair. "Bella has already risked much for you and that family. Maybe it's time that someone else bore some of the responsibility."

Brent scowled and shook his head. "Fine, I will bring Laura here-"

"No, we will escort your Laura here," Felix snapped. "Bella," I think a little lethargy is in order."

"Brent looked confused as he tried to decipher the meaning behind Felix's cryptic remark, when my power rushed over him, causing him to lean heavily against his chair and close his eyes.

"Come Christian. We must invite our fair Laura to grace us with her enchanting company this evening."

I watched them walk out the door into the cool night when a vision of Demetri filled my eyes. He was with Edward at the old house and they were fighting Virat and his guards. I watched as Demetri, Jasper, and Edward tore and clawed at Virat. Jasper was countering Virat's powers with his own, trying to subdue him long enough for one of them to land the final blow. A scream cut through the night and I watched in horror as Kattra's lithe form sank to the ground and remained utterly still. Alyria cried out and decapitated Chelsea, tossing her head to the road and collapsed over Kattra.

I came back to the Villa with Brent still relaxing, and Santiago staring intently at me.

A/N: I will try and have another post by this weekend. Let me know what you think. And any suggestions to get Bella and Edward back on track would be helpful, as they don't seem to want to cooperate with me. Thanks for reading.

Sabrina