18. FREEDOM
The next morning Marcus and Didyme sat on the hotel bed facing each other with the radio playing quietly in the background. They were waiting for Greg Martin, Marcus' associate who was flying in from London. Marcus was rubbing Didyme's small feet in his hands as they talked.
"One of the first things we'll have to do when Mr. Martin gets here is change our names," Marcus said. "It doesn't have to be a huge change but we need something more modern so that we don't draw attention to ourselves."
Didyme nodded. "What's your name going to be?"
Marcus grinned, "Mark."
Didyme started laughing, "Well that is going to be a very difficult transition for you, isn't it?"
Marcus started tickling the bottoms of the feet that were already in his hands which only made her laugh more. "Your name is going to be much more difficult though. No one has the name Didyme these days and if Aro ever heard mention of the name he would know that we made it back. Is there another name that you like that you'd want to go by?"
Didyme shrugged. "What are some modern names that are similar to mine?"
Marcus looked up as he thought. "Didyme… Didyme… Diana?"
Didyme made a face to show that she disliked the name. It reminded her of the Roman goddess that went by that name and Didyme did not want to be named after a god.
"Okay… how about Debbie or Dina? Daisy, Daphne, Delilah? Any of those sound good to you?" Marcus had his face tilted to the side as he watched her expressions.
She shrugged again. "None of those feel like me. Didyme is my name. Are you sure I have to change it?"
Marcus nodded and the two of them sat silently for a moment while the radio continued to play. When a song ended, the DJ came on. "Up next we've got 'Monster' by Meg and Dia."
The song started and Didyme's eyes lit up. "That's it! The name from that box thing!" she said as she pointed to the small radio.
Marcus laughed. "You want to be called Monster?"
"No," she said, mock glaring at him, but still with the curve of a smile to her lips. "Dia. It is modern but it still feels like me."
"Dia," Marcus said the name to see how if felt. "Dia… I like it. You will be called Dia from now on."
Didyme laid back on the pillows, satisfied with the accomplishment of finding a new name.
Marcus' face, however, remained serious. There was still something else they needed to discuss. "Didyme- er, I mean Dia," he smiled as he corrected himself. "There is one more thing we need to resolve."
"And what's that?" She asked, smiling at him from her crown of pillows.
"I never asked you what you wanted, whether or not you wanted to remain human or become vampires again. If it's the latter, we could seek out Carlisle Cullen. He has a success rate of turning humans to vampires that can't be beat. We wouldn't have to worry about any 'accidents'. We could probably trust him to never tell Aro, unless Aro had the opportunity to read his mind somehow-"
"Marcus, stop." Didyme's face was serious now. "I… I never really enjoyed being a vampire. The only good fortune that it brought me was meeting you- and now I have you."
Marcus remained silent.
"What about you?" she asked. "You've asked me what I want and I've spoken before considering your feelings. If you wanted to become a vampire again, I would follow you, because I love you."
He smiled weakly at her. "Being a vampire does have its advantages. I will miss being able to run fast. I will miss having the strength to protect you. But I think being human, at least for a little while, would be a good thing for us. We need to lie low. Aro will have Demetri searching for us. Demetri's tracking ability is unmatched because he doesn't need physical clues to find who he's hunting- instead he catches the tenor of a person's thoughts and that is how he is able to track them down no matter where they are in the world. Luckily for us, Demetri has never known us as humans and the tenor of our minds have changed from what they were when we were vampires. A human mind thinks much slower than a vampire's would. As long as we remain human, Demetri will have no success in finding us."
Didyme nodded. "So then we will remain human, at least until things settle down."
He nodded and then there was a knock at the door. Marcus rolled off the bed and opened it to find Mr. Martin standing there is a very expensive suit. "Come in," Marcus said as he held the door open.
"Thank you, Marcus," Mr. Martin greeted. "Hello Didyme."
"It's Dia." She corrected.
He smiled politely and made his way over to the small round table centered in front of the room's window. He set his briefcase on it and opened it up. "Alright Marcus, I have all the paperwork here for your new identities. I just need to take your pictures to finish off your driver's licenses." He eyed Didyme for a brief second. "Are you sure you want her to have one?"
Marcus smiled. "I'll teach her. She'll be fine."
Mr. Martin pulled out a laptop and continued to work. Didyme stared in awe at all the technology. He had them stand against the white walls of the motel room and he took their pictures with a digital camera. Step by step, Marcus explained everything to Didyme.
Mr. Martin ran the photos through his laptop and hooked up a small machine that printed out their fake ID's. "Alright I have a Mark Christiansen and a Dia Smith. Are you sure you don't want me to just forge your marriage certificate now and give you both the same last name?"
"No thank you," Marcus said. "She deserves a real wedding."
Mr. Martin nodded and handed them their ID's along with various documents. "I have all of your funds set up in the account you specified. The house on Kauai has already been purchased in your new name, here is the address and the key." He handed him another envelope with the key inside. "There will be a car in the driveway waiting for you, the key to that is also in the envelope. I've gone ahead and booked your flights from the Big Island over to Kauai, the flight leaves in three hours. There will be a driver there to meet you at the airport to take you to your home. In the meantime, here is some cash to get you whatever you need." He handed Mark one last envelope that felt very thick.
"Thank you for everything Mr. Martin," Mark said. "I knew you wouldn't fail me."
Mr. Martin smiled. "That's what they pay me the big bucks for. I need to catch my flight back to London, would you like for me to send my driver back for you?"
"Yes, that would be great," Mark nodded.
"Very well then. I've left you my card so that if you ever need me you shouldn't hesitate to call."
"Thank you." Mark said again as he put his arm around Dia. They said their goodbyes and watched Mr. Martin drive away in a black limousine.
Dia sighed. "Alright, one more time, tell me who that was?"
Mark kissed the top of her head. "That was Greg Martin. He's the kind of man that has connections. I contacted him shortly after I found out about your brother's betrayal. I did it all in secret so that Corin wouldn't even know if Aro ever read his mind again. As a leader of the Volturi, we have accumulated a lot of money over the years. I withdrew my shares and had Mr. Martin move the money around until it became untraceable. I paid him a lot of money to have everything done just right. I think the investment was well worth it."
They held each other tightly. This was it. The beginning of their new lives.
"Mark?" Dia asked.
He smiled at the new name. "Yes, Dia?"
"I'm hungry."
"Oh, I bought us food yesterday when I went out." He let go of their embrace and went around to the other side of the bed. On the floor were the bags that he had pushed off the night before. He opened them and was surprised to find that the ice cream he had purchased had melted all over everything. "I forgot to put away the ice cream! It's all ruined. I'm so sorry. Getting used to human food is going to be quite the transition. Come, I'll take you out to eat."
The two of them packed what little belongings they had and left the hotel room. They found a diner, had breakfast, and left the waitress a very large tip because despite their disheveled appearance, she had been kind to them. They went back to the motel and sat out front until the limousine driver returned for them. Dia again was enchanted by all the dials and buttons inside the vehicle. She especially loved the window in the roof that opened and closed at the touch of a button. They got to the airport and were overwhelmed by the scent of all the exotic flowers from the side shops that were selling leis. Marcus went into one of the shops targeted for tourists and purchased a lei of white tuberoses and tiny red rose buds.
He placed it over her head onto her shoulders and said "You just got lei'd".
She looked at him confused. "What does that mean?"
He laughed, "Never mind. Silly human joke." He wondered if Corin would have appreciated another one of his poor attempts at modern sayings.
They caught their flight which took them to one of the smaller Hawaiian Islands, Kauai. A driver met them at the baggage claim but they had no luggage so there was no need to wait. After a short drive, the driver dropped them off at a beautiful house on the beach. In the driveway they saw a black Aston Martin V12 Vanquish. Mark had noticed that the Cullen's had this car in their driveway and had admired it ever since. He was pleased that Mr. Martin had gotten the details right.
The house took Dia's breath away. She had never been any place so luxurious. The castle in Volterra had not been this nice during the years she had lived there. It was large and spacious with many windows, tiled floors, and granite countertops. They walked through until they reached the sliding glass doors at the back of the home. Once opened, they were introduced to a spectacular pool area. The view was stunning. Their backyard was the beach itself and the ocean looked peaceful and inviting.
"Oh Mark, this place is amazing! Do we really get to live here?" Didyme was overwhelmed with gratitude.
"Yes Dia, we really do get to live here. I'm glad you like it." He wrapped his arms around her and kissed her. He never wanted to stop kissing her.
They made their way back into the house and found the master bedroom. Dia was surprised to find a large canopy bed filling up the center of the room. It reminded her of Marcus' bed in Volterra. Her mind wandered but only for a moment.
"Let's get changed and go out." Marcus interrupted her thoughts. He opened up the large master bedroom closet and they found a wide range of clothing filling the space. "I wasn't sure what you'd like so I told Mr. Martin to get everything."
She smiled and let her fingers dance along the hangers that held up many different beautiful gowns. She stopped on a simple little black dress. "This one for tonight."
They both got changed and were dressed exceptionally well. Mark led her out to their new car and they drove to the nicest restaurant that the island had to offer. Their table had a view of the sun setting over the beach. It was perfectly romantic.
After Dia finished what she proclaimed to be the best meal of her lives, Marcus took her by the hand and led her down to the darkened shore. He held her small hand in his and brought it to his lips so that he could kiss it. Then slowly, he lowered himself down into the sand on one knee.
"Dia Smith, if you would let me, I'd like to love you for the rest of our lives, no matter how long that may be." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small black box. He popped the lid to reveal a replica of his mother's ring.
"Mark!" Dia gasped. "How did you get this back? I thought you had to give it to the Oracle."
"I did." Mark smiled, pleased that she was pleased. "I had Mr. Martin duplicate the ring by the best jewelers in the world. It may not be the same, but my love for you is."
She took the ring and slid it onto her finger. It was a perfect fit. "Yes," she whispered. "A thousand times yes!" She laughed as he quickly stood and swept her into his arms. They kissed again but this time it lasted longer.
She breathed against his lips. "I never thought this would actually happen."
"What?" Mark asked.
"This. Our happy ending."
He kissed her again and vowed within himself to make sure Didyme had her happily ever after.
Three Days Later
Mark and Dia had a small ceremony on the beach in front of their house. They hired a local pastor to perform the wedding and asked him to provide the witnesses. It was a perfect day.
That night they returned to their home and made love for the first time. Dia was grateful for Mark's gentle touch. He was soft, kind, patient, and loving. He was her everything.
Two Months Later
Mark decided to take a break from his part time job to fly to the Big Island. Even though they didn't need the money, he decided to begin working at a local community center where he provided relationship counseling. Although his gift as a vampire was gone, he still had his intuitions on the bonds between people. He could sense when a family was struggling because one person's loyalty might be waning. He would reach out to that person and try to reignite the flame they had once felt for their partner.
Dia would come with him to his office and serve as a secretary. When the couples would walk in, they couldn't help but smile at her happy and beautiful face. Already, the therapy was working because they wanted to be happy, the way Dia was happy. They trusted her husband to do that for them.
They worked for pennies, and would often accept patients who couldn't afford to pay. If the community center was struggling financially, Mark would leave an anonymous donation at Mele's door. Mele was the Hawaiian woman who ran the community center. She was single and had no children of her own, but her life's joy was helping others. She was grateful when Mark and Dia showed up asking how they could help.
Now Mark was off to the Big Island. He had been inspired by one of Mele's lectures to the youth on making your wrongs right. She told them that everyone makes mistakes, but the important thing is to correct the mistakes you've made. Mark remembered all of the mistakes he had made during his lives but knew that it would be impossible to atone for every sin, for every murdered family member. Instead, he decided that he could only be accountable for this time around in his human life. He remembered the man who worked at the observatory on Mount Mauna Kea and how he had stripped him, bound him, and robbed him. At least this, Marcus could atone for.
He carried with him a thick envelope packed with money that would replace the stolen wallet, stolen car, and also some extra in case the man was in need of therapy after the traumatic ordeal. Marcus stepped out of his rental car onto the mountain's volcanic gravel outside the observatory. He had learned that the man's name was Henry Rasmussen from the observatory's website. They had profiles for all of their astronomers with pictures included. Mark took the heavy manila envelope with Henry Rasmussen's name on it and tucked it inside the door of the observatory. He decided it would be better not to face him in fear of sending him into cardiac arrest.
Mark made his way back over to his car and was about to get in when he heard faint voices that he thought he recognized. The gravel to the side of the parking area made a small cliff so that the base of the observatory was below the natural ground level. The peak of the cliff was above Mark's head. He walked over to it and slowly climbed it to peer over the top. He saw two figures, one much larger than the other. Suddenly Mark's heart was seized with panic. He knew who the two men were.
"How long is Aro going to make us stand around here?" Felix asked Demetri.
"Until he has something more important for us to do," Demetri said as he sighed in frustration.
"Maybe Corin lied," Felix offered. "You know, about this being the last place that he saw Marcus alive."
Demetri sighed again. "You forget that Aro sees past all lies with the touch of the hand."
Mark's heart ached as he overheard this. It was true, Aro had read Corin's mind. The lengths that Mark had taken to keep Corin from following him further had been necessary after all.
"True," Felix admitted. "It's a good thing Chelsea was there to greet him as soon as he came back. She whipped him right back into being Aro's puppy!" Felix laughed out loud, not seeing that he too was Aro's puppy. "Honestly though, how much longer can Aro expect us to wait around here? I'm hungry."
Demetri sniffed the air and caught the scent of human flesh. "There," he said, pointing towards the observatory "is where you'll find your next meal."
Mark cringed as he overheard them. He sank within himself. In his mind's eye he could see the future unfolding. He could see Demetri and Felix finding him and bringing him to Aro. He could see Aro changing him back with Chelsea using her power over him to make him loyal once more to the Volturi. He could see Aro reading his mind and learning of Didyme's whereabouts. He envisioned Aro going to collect his long lost sister and changing her back as well, or worse, allowing history to repeat itself by killing her once more. His body stiffened at the thought and his foot scraped the gravel. The tiny fracture of a sound was enough to capture the attention of the two vampires standing above Mark.
He listened closely as he could barely make out the sound of their light feet taking a step towards his hidden location. Then suddenly, a loud electronic ringing sound ripped through the silence. Demetri grabbed his cell phone from his pocket and flipped it open.
"Hello, my lord Aro."
Marcus could only hear Demetri's end of the conversation.
"Yes sir, right away. We shall meet with you again before the end of tomorrow's day." Then he hung up the phone and turned to meet Felix's questioning eyes. "Aro wants us back in Volterra immediately. Apparently he has a new task for us."
Felix grinned. "I like a new challenge."
"Good, then you won't mind being the first to try to create a hybrid like Renesmee."
Felix's jaw dropped. "Really?"
"Really," Demetri answered flatly. "You know how Aro hasn't been able to stop thinking about her? Well the Cullen's would never willingly give her to Aro so now he has it in his head that he'll just make one of his own. In fact, he and Caius have already returned from South America. They hunted down Joham and retrieved all of his scientific research on creating these hybrids. Now he is ready to begin his own experiments and would like you and Gianna to be the first."
Felix had to laugh at this. "I always knew she had a crush on me."
Their voices became smaller as they walked away from Mark's hidden location. Soon he heard the clicking of an engine and then the rotating of helicopter blades. Mark quickly climbed back into his car where the roof of it would block him from the Demetri and Felix's aerial view.
When they were gone, Mark let out a sigh of relief. He pushed the car into reverse and began his descent off the mountain. He vowed that he and Didyme would never return to Mount Mauna Kea.
Three Years Later
Mark and Dia were sitting on the beach in front of their home. Dia dug her toes into the sand as she watched their seven month old son sitting beside them, exploring the strange feel of the beach. They had named him Corbin, a close relation to Mark's best friend, Corin. Mark wanted to name their first born son after the man who had helped him save Dia, but he was worried about the Volturi somehow finding the boys records and their interest being piqued at the rare and ancient name. So they settled on Corbin.
"Mark?" Dia said softly.
"Yes?"
"Remember when you asked me if I wanted to go back to being a vampire and we decided we would wait and see?"
"Mm hmm." The crash and lull of the waves brought Mark a peace he rarely felt anywhere else.
"Well now that we have Corbin, I've decided that I don't ever want to go back to being a vampire. He is my everything and I want to live for him. I want him to have a happy and normal life, no blood drinking, no killing, no running. I want him to be safe. Are you alright with that?"
Mark leaned across the child sitting between them and kissed his wife on the cheek. "Of course I am. You two are my world. I am perfectly content with us living out our days on this beach. Vampires don't like Hawaii because there's so much daylight here and Kauai has such a small population that no vampire would dare take up residence here and expose the species by a constant string of murders and disappearances that would usually go unnoticed in a larger city. We're safe here, Dia. I won't let anything happen to our family."
Dia nodded, satisfied with his answer. Their hands reached through the sand behind the baby boy until they found each other. With fingers clasped and the sun setting, Mark and Dia knew that this was their happily ever after.
