Author's Note: Thank you for reviewing! I'm glad you guys are enjoying the story so far. Sorry for the long updates. I'm trying to juggle this story and my Finance class. Such a headache! Anyways…

Enjoy!

CHAPTER 3: Volterra, Italy

"Welcome to Florence, Tuscany. We hope you enjoy your stay in Italy," the captain says over the speaker after he first says it in Italian.

Jane booked me on Air France with a direct flight in first class so I didn't have to bother with any stopovers. I land at Florence-Peretola "Amerigo Vespucci" Airport in Florence after a grueling nine hours and forty-five minutes of sitting on my butt. I did occasionally stand up to stretch but every time I did, someone came up to me asking if I need something. The only nice thing about sitting in first class is that you have your own section to yourself without having to sit next to anyone. The plush leather recliner seats are all aligned against the windows so that the stewardesses can walk around with enough room to check on the passengers and get them whatever they want. I'm the only one in my section under fifty. Everyone around me appears to be businessmen, dressed in their three piece suits and laptops on hand. I got the occasional stares wondering what a girl like me is doing in first class, politely smiling at their questioning looks.

At the baggage claim area, I see a man dressed in a black button up suit holding a sign that read: ISABELLA SWAN. Great, I thought, rolling my eyes. Of course that's the name my uncle would have them write. I half-smile at the man to let him know he found me. After he acknowledges my greeting, he immediately grabs my carryon. "Welcome to Italy, Signora Isabella," he says in his Italian accent. "My name is Felix. I was sent by Signor Aro to bring you to him."

"Thanks…and it's just Bella," I correct. He nods and smiles making sure to remember what I prefer to be called. Felix appears to be in his mid-thirties if not younger. He's very big, tall, and thick through the shoulders. He is also somewhat intimidating to look at, like he can crush me with a flick of his fingers. He has a slightly olive complexion with short, cropped, black hair. He is pretty handsome—not that anyone here in Italy looked less than model perfect. The next thing I notice is the gold necklace he is wearing that resembled a crest of some kind.

"Do you have many bags?" he asks, bringing me out of my daze.

"Huh? Oh...uhh…no," I shake my head, smiling. "Oh, there it is," I point, reaching out to grab it when he beats me to the handle. He carries it off the conveyer belt without any effort. I couldn't do anything but step back, bumping into someone I didn't see. "Oh, sorry…perdonatemi," I say, apologizing.

The man shakes his head, confused at my words, smiling and waving his hands trying to tell me he didn't understand a word that came out of my mouth. "Ahh…sorry…I don't speak English good…no Italian."

"Oh," I nod my head politely, continuing to smile. He must be from another country who is visiting like me. I look around and a lot of people are hugging what looks like family and friends. It kind of makes me wish I had that kind of welcoming, but I understand how busy Aro was.

"You speak Italian?" Felix finally breaks the silence as we start to walk toward the car.

"Only a little. I used to spend a few summers here when I was younger. I took Spanish in high school," I smile sheepishly.

Felix grins. "Well, I suppose that is close enough."

As we finally get to the black tinted town car, he instructs me to go ahead and have a seat in the back while he puts my luggage and backpack in the trunk. The car smells of new leather with a few magazines laid out next to me like Italian Vogue, Cosmopolitan, and Elle. There is even an Italian newspaper in the mix, which I stay away from. I wasn't sure who they belong to so I ask Felix about it.

"Umm…Felix, I think someone might have left their things back here?" I lean forward once he gets into the driver's seat.

He looks back to see what I'm referring to. He smiles again. "No, signora, those are for you—to read while you are in the car. Also," he grabs something from his inner coat pocket, "this is for you." He starts the car as soon as I take it from him.

It is a letter with my name on it and I recognize the handwriting to be Jane's. It is basically Jane greeting me to Italy and how excited they are. She also gives me the address and phone number of the hotel villa they are renting near the location of where filming is suppose to take place and a room key. She tells me in the note to go ahead and get settled in and that she will check on me in a few hours. She is off with my uncle touring the countryside for another possible location so she couldn't personally greet me. I place the note in my Louis Vuitton purse and rummage through the stacks of reading material, my interest settling on a gossip magazine.

I flip through the pages, briefly reading the articles about how celebrities lost weight, who was cheating on whom, and who wore it best. I smile seeing one of Alice's designs on Monica Bellucci, a gorgeous Italian actress that was in the last two Matrix movies and the Brothers Grimm. Even for a fifty-something-year-old woman, she hasn't lost her vibrant glow. The next small article I see is of Aro's new movie. Apparently the new title of the movie is going to be called Fair Play. It was a catchy title, I thought.

There is also a picture of someone the paparazzi tried to snap, but a big bouncer looking man and a blonde-haired woman is blocking the shot. They have a jacket over his head, covering him. The only real shot they get is of the football looking ring on his right ring finger that has a gold band set in black stone with a crest. Crest symbols appear to be popular here. The woman in the picture is also gorgeous. I wonder if she's an actress herself. The man hiding under the black leather jacket must be playing the leading role, whoever he is. I doubt Aro would be thrilled seeing this if he hadn't already. The big press conference isn't until a few days from now and he was trying hard to keep the actors inconspicuous.

The car ride lasts about an hour as I continue to occupy myself with magazines until Felix finally parks the car. I hadn't been paying much attention after we passed the main parts of the city and the view changed to mostly landscape outside my window. I roll down the dark tinted glass so I can see better and find us at a smaller terminal parked right on the tarmac by a private jet. I have no idea where we are. Felix gets out of the car and opens my door. "Signora," he says, gesturing for me to step out.

I scoot over to the side and throwing one leg out the door followed by the other. He closes the door behind me and goes for my things in the trunk. I look around and don't see any other aircrafts here. There is even a small red carpet that leads to the plane's entrance. A woman in a pencil skirt with a white fitted blouse steps out and approaches us from the small aircraft. "Benvenuti! Welcome to Italy, signora. My name is Natalie and I will be your head stewardess on your flight to Volterra," she smiles her pearly whites at me. Her hair is slicked back in a bun, much like Jane's, but tighter. She also has big brown eyes and thick dark lashes.

Felix is already on his way to the plane with my things in his hands while I stay by the car. "Please go ahead and board the plane, signora," Natalie tries to usher me forward.

"Sorry, I was just used to driving all the way there," I tell her. Not that I was looking forward to it by any means. "I had no idea he would send a private jet for me."

"Well, actually, this private jet belongs to your uncle. He uses it often when he travels around Europe. Signor Aro tires of the long travel so this air field was built especially for him. It will also be a more convenient form of transportation for you. You will be landing only a couple of miles away from Volterra."

My excitement perks up a little. Having a famous uncle did have its advantages, but I have to remind myself to keep my cool when it came to his fame. My parents made sure they kept my feet firmly planted on the ground whenever he would take me on expensive vacations and shopping sprees when I was younger. I know the value of a dollar and growing up with my mother, Renee, she always made me put the money Aro gave me every year on my birthday in a savings account and only let me spent a small portion of it on whatever I wanted. It was frustrating for a little girl not being able to get a bunch of sneakers she had her eyes on, but saving up for several years added to my college fund, even though Aro was willing to pay for all four years of my tuition. However, my parents wouldn't allow it, especially Charlie, who I think didn't want to be shown up by Aro and prove to him that he can support his only daughter's education without any help. "Only live within you means," he used to remind me.

I strap on my seatbelt and relax into the cream leather seat. This is more comfortable than the one I sat in on my flight over. There are eight plush seats total, four on each side, with a big gap in between each seat where another passenger seat can be placed in the middle. There are also two stewardesses, Natalie, and another female named Irina. Her accent sounds slightly Russian, also dressed in the same attire as her coworker. The captain comes to greet me, expressing how happy they are to have me aboard and promises me a safe flight. He is apparently good friends with Aro. He gives me the flight details and says that it will take about two hours at the speed we are going to be flying at, landing just outside of Volterra.

Because Volterra is a small city full of narrow areas, there is no way any sort of plane, even a bicycle with wings strapped to it, would fit in the streets. On the backside of Volterra is a little seaport for fishermen and those who could afford expensive boats, which still wasn't big enough even for a sea plane because the docks are too close together. From far away the town looks like it sits on top of a mountain covered by surrounding trees.

"Would you like something to drink?" Irina asks me, holding out a bottle of expensive water. Well, I assume it was expensive because it was in a glass bottle with fancy writing on it. I thank her and place it on the tray beside me. Felix sits near the front by the door talking to Natalie. She gently squeezes his arm when the captain asks for everyone to take a seat as we were about to depart. I take the magazines with me from the car so I can finish skimming through them. Even if the flight still takes about five hours, it will be more of a relief by plane since we are allowed to walk around the cabin that has a wide aisle and plenty of leg room; a layout you don't normally have in a car unless you drove a large tank. Or bus.

I finally open the bottled water I was given and take a sip. The cool, refreshing liquid down my throat makes me feel better. I hadn't realized how thirsty I am. It gives a tingling feeling in my mouth telling me that it is definitely an expensive brand. My Dasani and Aquafina bottles never did that. They are merely tap water compared to this magical water that only the gods probably drank in Volterra. The gods, meaning Aro and those who can afford to stock up on it.

The plane ride is quiet. All I hear is the soft humming of the engine plane and the sound of the wind outside my window. Natalie and Irina are chit-chatting in hush whispers where they sit. I lean forward in my seat to try and get a better glimpse of Felix who seems to have fallen asleep, his head slightly tilted to the side toward the aisle. Looking at his comfortable form starts to make me sleepy, too. There is still about forty-five minutes left until we land, according to my watch. It is plenty of time for a power nap. It was, after all, way past my bedtime if I was still on west coast time.

An involuntary yawn escapes from my lips as I recline my seat, my arms folded in front of my chest, letting the Sandman's sleeping dust wash over me. I yawn a few more times before I fall into a dreamless dream. I finally wake to the sound of the captain announcing we are landing soon. I swear I just closed my eyes ten minutes ago, but my watch says otherwise. I position my seat back up and stare out the window again. We are passing more landscape and a strip of concrete road with two lanes travelling one way, each way. It really looks like the country out here minus the rolling fields. To my surprise, I see a yellow Porsche fly out of nowhere, zipping by a slow moving tractor in its path, swerving smoothly over to the opposite lane and then back in the correct lane again, completing the takeover in an instant. I never knew such cars existed here, but then again, Aro did say things had changed quite a bit since my last visit.

The urge to dispose of the water in my system I drank earlier suddenly creeps up on me. I shouldn't have drunk the one and a half bottles Irina gave me. I feel like a camel storing it in my hump, in this case, my tiny bladder. I was fighting with the decision to wait until we land or hurry and sneak to the back to quickly use the bathroom. Natalie has already checked up on me so she wasn't going to notice if I'm not in my seat and I doubt these jets have security cameras. Or at least, I hope they didn't! I decide to wait but the image of an exploding geyser keeps appearing in my mind.

No matter how hard I try to cross my legs or distract myself, I really had to go! Badly. I also wasn't about to pee in my pants. Never making that same mistake again like I did in the third grade. We were watching some movie my teacher brought in and I really had to go but I didn't want to miss any part of it. When I finally got up, it was already too late. The kids teased me for a whole week calling me 'bellow yellow'. Ugh. It was horrible. I ran out of the room crying, bumping into the door since I had my eyes closed, which sent the room in an even bigger uproar. The following day I lied to my mother that all the kids in my class had lice so that I could stay home and not face any of them after that mortifying incident. She called the school and wasn't very pleased with me when she heard all the kids were perfectly fine. Oops.

I undid my seatbelt and made a quick, quiet dash to the back of the jet plane. I lock the stall so it says 'occupied' and did my business. I smile happily and content that my bladder now feels ten pounds lighter. I wash my hands and sneak back to my seat without anyone even knowing I was missing. I grin to myself thinking I'm pretty slick with no one the wiser. I was trying to strap myself back in but one of the seatbelt straps had fallen over the seat, dangling, so I reached down sideways trying to feel the end of it where the metal clip-on was and finally found it. I click the belt together and adjust the strap for it to fit better around my waist, however, it was stuck. I kept pulling on it but it was still too loose. The final tug I give causes my elbow to hit the half-opened bottle next to me that sat on the small tray to my side. Instead of a little water spilling on me, the cap itself came off, the glass bottle flying toward me from the rough landing we made. I let out a short, startled scream as the cold liquid graces my lap and the bottom half of my blue shirt with speckles of water all over me, even my face.

Felix looks back wondering what happened but the way he was positioned he couldn't see me clearly. Natalie came rushing over, holding onto the top of the seats to support her balance as the plane hadn't stopped moving yet. "Signora, are you all right?" she asks concerned. She gasps slightly with her hand over her mouth when she finally sees my misfortune.

"Yeah, I'm fine," I mumble and embarrassed, wiping some of the water off my cheek with my hand.

"What's the matter? What happened?" Irina is right on her toes. She mimics Natalie's reaction when she sees me. "Oh…"

They are both quiet for a moment as if they've never seen water spilled on anyone before, just staring at my lap. It was actually more awkward than embarrassing. "Umm…is there a towel on the plane or anything?" I ask, now annoyed.

"Oh! Yes, yes, of course," Natalie finally snaps out of it. She gives Irina a look to go get me one.

"Oh, yes! Right away," Irina quickly returns back to the font of the plane.

I undid my seatbelt again after the plane finally parks on the strip. The only type of towel they had was the size of a dish rag. Irina gave me two to see what I could do with it. They leave me alone to attend to my mess when Felix makes his appearance, moving politely to the side to let them pass. "Are you all right, signora?" his reaction was a little more subtle than the stewardesses.

"Yeah, it's nothing. It's just me being…me," I sit up, more annoyed with myself. How did I not see this happening? Felix gives me a quizzical look, not really understanding what I meant. "I'm pretty clumsy," I explain.

"Oh…I see," he nods his head. "Well, then, you should be very careful in the streets of Volterra. Many people like to, how you say, bicicletta…" he thought on the translation, "bicycle in the streets. They sometimes don't pay attention to the people."

"Thanks for the tip. I'll keep that in mind."

Even though I was wearing dark jeans, the water spot made it look even darker around my crotch area. I try to dry as much of it as I can and wringed my shirt a little but that just made it look worse now that it was semi-wrinkled. I hold the wet spot of the cotton material out so that it stops rubbing against my skin. The only thing I can do is hide the accident with my jacket tucked closely in front of me. This scene slightly reminds me of the third grade again, minus the crying. I sigh since I can't change until we get to the hotel villa. I slowly follow behind Felix, my head down, to the new town car waiting for us and just like before, I step into the back seat while he put my things in the trunk.

"Don't worry, signora, we'll be there soon," he smiles at me from the inside mirror. I half-smile back as we drive off. In my haste to get out of the plane, I left the magazines inside. I guess Natalie and Irina can put them to good use or throw them away for me. I won't have time to glance through them anyway since we will be in Volterra in about twenty minutes. I am suddenly excited as we draw nearer the small city, I think mostly because I want to change out of these dirty clothes I've been travelling in for almost twelve hours. Twenty minutes later Felix announces, "There she is."

I opened the tinted window and stick my head out, letting the breeze play with my hair. It is colder and a little cloudier here than it was in Florence. Volterra appears bigger and bigger the close we arrive. It really does look secluded from the world, sitting high up in its elevated territory. The entire city appears to be protruding from the trees when you look at it from the distance, as if the trees had bore it. There is also only one way in and one way out. The only other way was through the seaport, which is a difficult path if you didn't have a boat.

Felix keeps honking at people who were leisurely strolling in front of us, looking back like they didn't care if he hit them. They continue to walk, only moving over when they feel like it so we could inch forward. It also didn't help that we were on a small hill going upwards. Life here is definitely different than it is in LA or Forks. In LA, there would have been a crowd of people in the streets cursing at us saying they had the right of way—even though they didn't. In Forks, people would be running to get out of your way, apologizing for being there in the first place. The only people who quickly obliges to Felix's road rage are the tourists. They stick out like a sore thumb with their maps and fancy cameras around their necks. Some are even taking pictures of the expensive town car. It also isn't that difficult to spot the paparazzi. I figure we must be close to the hotel villa because I keep seeing more and more of them.

"Here we are, signora," he turns off the engine. He opens my car door and doesn't wait for me to get out of it this time. Instead, he goes straight for my luggage and proceeds inside my new home for the next three months. It has a rustic feel to it with square tops built with different heights marking how many floors there were in each section. The pastel color of it matches most of the buildings in the neighborhood, but stands out the most, as it is the biggest with banners hanging down the balconies that say: Villa al Mare. From what I remember it means Villa by the Sea. I guess it is a fitting name since it was close enough to the seaport. Aro's own villa isn't too far off and is gated away from the public. I assume he didn't want to stay there so the media wouldn't hound him in his own home.

Felix is over at the front desk talking to the person behind the counter when I finally enter. He is a bald man with brown eyes, looking like he was in his 40s but still handsome and fit. Sort of like George Clooney, except with no hair. He peeks over Felix's shoulder to glance at me, smiles, and then continues his conversation. By the time I reach them, he smiles at me again and assists the next customer. I look at Felix wondering what I should do next. "He says you should already have the key to your room, Signora Jane checked you in this morning. Someone will also be here soon to take you upstairs."

"Okay…thanks," I slip my hands in my pockets to wait. I put on my jacket and zip it to cover the water stain that hasn't dried yet. A few minutes later, a bellboy with a cart comes by. Felix says something to him in Italian about my luggage to which he only nods.

"He will take you to your room so I will take my leave now. I am sure I will see you again," the dark-haired driver smiles at me. "Be safe in Volterra," he grins, lightly teasing.

After the long drive and making sure I got here in one piece, it was only right that I give Felix a tip for his services. "Wait!" I call to him, digging through my purse for money. I still had American currency dollars, which isn't accepted here so I had to search for lira bills—the currency of Italy. Jane is also kind enough to provide me with their currency so I didn't have to stop by the bank to exchange the American bills I have. I pull out what I believe is about twenty American dollars and hand it to him.

"No, signora," he politely declines, waving away my offer. "I am employed by Signor Aro so there is no need to give me money. I am happy to be of service."

"Oh," I say a little surprised. I thought he was a rent-a-driver or something, if those even exist here. Still, I feel I owned him something so I still offer it telling him Aro didn't need to know.

He laughs softly and still refuses. "Have a wonderful day, Signora Bella," he walks off. I turn to the bellboy who just shrugs at me. I shrug back not knowing what else to do and laugh since we both look confused, me—not understanding why Felix wouldn't take the money, and him—most likely not understanding what we were saying.

The bellboy motions for me to follow him to the elevators after he places my belongings on the cart. He is short and scrawny, much like Jacob when he was younger and no longer the case. His name tag said: Maurice. I watch his foot tapping against the onyx tiling as we wait to step out. My room is on the fifth floor in the east wing of the hotel villa. When we get there, I only see two doors, one to the right and one to the left in the long hallway filled with tables and vases of flowers. Straight ahead is a small terrace. "La tua camera è il diritto," he points to the right door. I figure that is my room. "La chiave?" he did a turning motion with his hand.

"Oh, key!" I exclaim, almost forgetting that Jane included it with the letter and money. I take it out of the envelope and insert it into the key hole, turning the handle. Maurice pushes the door wide open to bring the cart inside. He places my things by the door and clears his throat with his palm facing outward toward me. I look at him and then his hand, a cheesy smile on his face. Of course he would expect a tip. I inwardly roll my eyes and give him a few lire bills, but not as much as I wanted to give to Felix.

"Grazie. Godetevi il vostro soggiorno!" he shows another cheesy grin and walks out, closing the door behind him. He was speaking too fast for me to understand anything he had said—not that I understood much to begin with. All I could make out was 'thank you'.

I place my purse on the nearby chair and look around. The room is absolutely beautiful. It looks like a penthouse suite. It has ivory brown granite stone flooring and cream walls. There is a huge twilled champagne carpet on the floor with diamond designs that cover most of the room and the couches and chairs are also covered in white twilled sheets. Even the ottomans and mahogany coffee tables look Victorian. To the far end of the room is a fireplace positioned against the wall with more chairs and a cute zebra-striped cushioned piano type chair. There are also different types of paintings and vases placed all over the room that are wood and dark metal. I even have a big banana plant next to the fireplace, the kind that emperors were fanned with. Up above me is a dark wooden-brown chandelier with actual thick candle sticks in them.

The room is cozy and has the perfect amount of things in its décor. There are a lot of big items but they are all strategically placed so that a person has enough room to walk around comfortably without bumping into something, which was perfect for me. I prefer not to add property damage to my uncle's room bill. The one thing that got me what the natural light coming in from the three arched terrace glass doors I have. Yes, I said three doors. They are in perfect alignment with a painting on the wall in between each one. I walk out and see two more chandeliers dandling from the covered roof top and curtains I can use to close off the terrace to the public if I want some privacy. It is really like my own little private getaway.

I glance out into the city, the seaport in perfect view. On the other side I can see pastoral farmhouses, and tiny villages around the city sequestered in the hills, and the rustic city square that has remained untouched by the technological advances of the twenty-first century. The fountain situated in the center of the city square also remains unchanged next to the big clock tower. I didn't know what it was about this place, but it always gives me the same feeling every time I am here. The feeling of excitement, like something good was about to happen. I only hope my intuition is right.

Author's Note: Okay, now that Bella's settled in, we can finally get to the good stuff. ;) Please don't forget to review! I would love to know what you think of the story so far!