The air was deathly still, and for a moment I wished fervently that I could take back what I'd just said. Then, I reminded myself that I was here for my family's sake, strengthening my wavered resolve.
"Bella, dear, do come in," offered a warm and welcoming voice from behind me. It struck up terrifying memories from my human past, and it took all of my willpower not to flee from this desolate place. I pulled my head up and down mechanically as the steel gates opened slowly, seemingly without the help of someone working them. I took step after tentative step until I was through the door and into a familiar lobby.
A human woman sat behind the desk, looking for all the world how a human trapped in a castle full of bloodthirsty vampires should NOT look. She was calm, detached, reminding me sickeningly of the last young woman I ever saw seated there. Of course, they had disposed of her at one time or another. I ground my teeth together in a mixture of fury and disgust for these human drinkers.
The thought of the last receptionist's disposal (I couldn't recall her name from one of my more faded memories over seventy years later) brought up an important question.
What was I going to eat?
The very idea of ending some poor human's life merely because I, a sadistic vampire, was thirsty was out of the question. I'd never broken my family's vegetarian way, and I wasn't planning on doing so now. Somehow, I would have to convince the members of the Volturi to let me out when I needed to hunt. For example, right now. The receptionist's scent had venom pooling in my mouth where it painfully scorched my skin. I swallowed it down as quickly as I could, fighting the urge to wince as it burned its way down my throat. It was a little late to be considering such a question now that I was inside. I realized I maybe should have thought things through before literally taking the first flight possible to Italy.
Fear had begun to claw away at my empty stomach, the towering stone walls making this dreary place feel more like a prison then a home.
"It's so nice to see you, Bella!" enthused Aro, shaking me out of my thoughts.
"It's nice to see you too, Aro," I lied, crossing my fingers behind my back briefly. I turned to look at Aro, logic having just struck home. Why didn't I ask the most welcoming member of the Volturi all of my questions before the more hostile two made an appearance? I shuddered at the memory of their cold, analytical eyes.
"Aro," I asked hesitantly, sampling words in my mind until I was sure I had the phrasing correct, "why did you pick me over the rest of the Cullen's?" His eyes glinted maliciously, a frightening reminder that he wasn't the kind houseguest he appeared to be.
"Because, dear Bella," he explained, gently tucking a strand of hair behind my ear. I fought the urge to gag. "We don't require their powers any longer." He paused before adding, "And though I respect Carlisle and his family a great deal, I'm afraid they wouldn't quite agree to what I'm about to ask of you."
"What do you want to ask?" My voice shook nervously, and I swallowed forcefully as venom arose in my mouth, a reaction to my 'fight or flight' emotions that were currently boiling in my brain, fogging my thoughts ever so slightly.
"Don't worry," he assured me, his attempt at a gentile tone coming choppy and threatening. "We would merely like to request your help, Bella, with installing a more solid obedience within certain vampires." His wording was obviously off, because I knew that by 'request,' he meant order. I doubted the Volturi's form of discipline would be anything humane, but I nodded anyways. I would keep my family safe, no matter the cost.
"I'm glad that I will be allowed the privilege to work alongside such a beautiful young vampire," Aro murmured, stroking my cheek with a papery finger. It took all I had by means of willpower not to pull away sharply from his touch, which was cold, even to me.
"Jane!" he called out, conjuring a bad mental image in my mind, a memory. Edward writhed on the cool stone floor, agony clear on his features at Jane's relentless glare. The young girl appeared seemingly out of thin air, grinning happily until her gaze rested on me. Her smile wavered as Aro instructed her to lead me to the nearby woods, his reasoning that I would like to feast on animal blood, my hunger uncomfortable at this very moment.
"Wait," I said, peering suspiciously at Aro, "I never said anything about feeding. How did you…?"
"Oh!" Aro cooed, a 'whoops, I forgot' expression forcefully pasted across his features. "I forgot to introduce you to Kristy." He turned his head to face a tall, slender vampire with chocolate colored skin, who hadn't been there a second ago. His hand was placed, seemingly casual upon the bare skin of her arm, but I suspected he was reading her thoughts.
"She's the reason we no longer require Alice nor Edward," he explained excitedly. It took a minute for me to work out the clues, but once I did, I realized that I had a huge problem.
"You can read minds and see into the future?" I asked the girl. Her body seemed to be frozen around the same age as my own.
"Yes," she replied proudly.
"Wow," I exclaimed. Great, that means…
"It means you've been caught," she finished, earning a look of shock from everyone in the room. How could she read my mind? I thought it had some sort of block on it.
"Really? Hm, interesting," she exclaimed, a bored look playing across her face as she stared at me blankly. Obviously, it wasn't really interesting to her at all. She nodded absently, then told Aro, who had removed his hand from her skin, to listen to what I've been planning. After a mere second, I was shooting for the exit. Kristy was faster than me, grabbing my arm and throwing me roughly to the ground. She pinned me down as I struggled in vain. Escape was just within my reach, but this strong girl held me from it. A sad look enveloped Aro's features, and he looked as though he would cry if he could.
"Bella," he asked, despair heavy in his voice. "Why would you betray us? I thought we were going to be great partners, but I suppose I've been wrong before." His defeated expression lasted for a few tense seconds longer, before being replaced by one so furious, I didn't know if I would have felt safe in even Edward's arms. Of course I would have. I always feel safe with Edward holding me.
"How touching," mocked Kristy, her death grip still very much in use. I couldn't move even an inch. "Our little friend here has got a special someone she'd love to see." Aro's eyes turned thoughtful, the rage still apparent in his posture. I screamed, fear flooding my every sense. It wasn't hard to see how Aro was planning on extracting revenge.
"Then we'll just have to tell him that," he decided, his spiteful words flooding my heart with pain.
I was too numb to really notice as he ordered Kristy to lock me in a bedroom. As if I couldn't get out of there. Aro, who still had his hand placed on Kristy, didn't miss my snide remark.
"With at least three guards constantly patrolling the perimeter," he added, grinning maliciously. Who was this vampire, and where had he locked up kind and patient Aro? He shook his head, still grinning madly as I was drug away. I gave no fight, praying only that Edward would ignore Aro's threats, and stay safe.