Chapter 27 - Bloodsport

The cold mountain wind caressed his face with its strong, icy fingers. Tiny pieces of ice pelted his skin, bouncing back into the snow with the force of a bullet. A cloud of heavy white swirled all around, obliterating any tracks left behind by his presence while he toiled up the mountainside. It was why he had chosen now to come. There was no danger of being seen. He could reveal himself on his own terms and only when certain they were alone.

Patience was a virtue best left to other men. Men better than he. Yet, years of sitting quietly in the dark had taught him a good deal. Though insufferable, he could wait. All of it a means to an end... and a glorious new beginning. One in which he would rise up with the dawn, claiming his rightful place among their kind, possessing an army of unmatched skill and strength, bound to him not by threats or magic but by generosity. Like the kings of old he would grant favors to those who swore an oath of fealty, thus ensuring their place amid the race of supernatural beings.

No longer would Caius sit on a golden throne, pretended saint or patron of the arts. The vastness of the world had shaken the dust from his stone limbs just as the sun had cleared the film from his long blind eyes. This was life! This was where he belonged. The all of humanity, the woods and lakes his home, it was his for the taking. The plan was clear, it would not fail. He would not allow it.

Atop a jagged mountain peak, Caius peered across the vast Alaskan wilderness, his sharp eyes spying their prey at long last. A stark figure cutting across the snow and ice. He watched as Edward Cullen tensed, body coiled, then sprung forth, tackling the unsuspecting, hungry elk who was digging deep beneath the white powder in search of grass.

Edward drank from the beast, pulling back now and again, watching the elk fight desperately for its chance to live. The evil that dwelled inside of him rose to the surface, his claw-like fingers raking over the body of the animal, ripping flesh from bone, spattering the pristine white landscape with an arc of crimson spray. He did not drink to ease his thirst. The vampire hunted to kill. To satiate the need for destruction, cloaking himself in a mask of righteousness. A mask Caius recognized all too well.

Bloodsport. No more than a game of survival.

Leaping from the summit, he was across the valley in a mere matter of seconds, landing quietly in the soft, white powder, barely shaking the snow beneath his feet.

Edward's eyes flew open wide in recognition, then again in fear as he deliberated his options. His family was close, but not so close that they would get to him in time if he were to shout. Before he was able to bolt, Caius clamped his arms around the waist of the angelic boy.

"Do not run," he commanded, keeping the tenor of his voice even when a part of him wanted to squeeze, crushing the life from Edward's body. "I am not here to cause you harm. I am here to give you a gift," he offered, managing to sound magnanimous.

"Where are the others? What do you want from me?"

"Aro and Marcus are still in their dank maze of sewers, feeding on unsuspecting tourists led to them like cattle for slaughter."

"Why are you here?" Edward demanded.

"I told you," he whispered. "I am here to give you a gift. A bargain if you will."

"There is nothing you could give that I would wish for."

"No?" The curve of Caius's lip rose in sinister delight. "What about your darling Isabella?"

The young vampire stopped thrashing then, stilling against Caius's body. "What have you done to her?" he hissed. "Where is she?"

"I have done nothing..." he replied with mock innocence, "except entice the girl back to her home. Back to the place where you fell in love. Back where she belongs."

Recognition stretched across Edward's eyes and Caius could already see the selfish, twisted wheels of his mind churning with possibilities. "Forks."

"Yes, child. To that small unsuspecting dreary town, obliterated by rain and cloud. A place where a vampire can live freely," he pointed out, "if he were to so choose. I must admit, I do not understand how you could leave her behind. The scent of her blood is quite... potent. Seductive. Even to one as old as I."

Again, Edward coiled, his body tense and ready to attack, but a fight was not what Caius had in mind. Not yet. It would not do to destroy this crucial piece of his plan. After the boy willingly bowed before him, he could easily be bent to his will. The girl was key.

"Do not worry, I will not drink from her," he vowed. "Though, I must admit, it is hard to control the desire when she passes by. There is something about her that is quite delicious. But, to harm her would not be an advantage for me," he explained, acting as companionable as two old friends having tea. "You see, there are things I want. Things you can help me achieve. A small matter of the shifters who live nearby. They have no place in our world and seem to want to lay claim to your darling Isabella. What a beautiful immortal she would make! If only those who seek to keep her close would be out of the way."

"They are not children of the moon," Edward replied. "Shapeshifters, nothing more. I have no quarrel with them."

"Ah, but you see, you do." Caius acted as one bestowing knowledge upon the unlearned masses, as if he were doing a great service in offering up this piece of wisdom by granting a favor. A favor he intended to collect on. "There is one among them who has laid claim to her affections. One who wishes to defile her womanly virtue, if he has not done already so."

"No." Edward's eyes turned black as coal. Bella belonged to him. There was never a doubt in his mind that one day he'd reclaim her affections. After all, she'd been but a child when they met. Ten years, he vowed. Ten years would be enough of a life before joining his family in this existence. "It is not possible," he snarled. Yet as soon as the words crossed his lips, Edward recalled Alice's vision in startling detail. The wedding dress. The champagne, the human blush on her cheeks... Bella was human in the vision.

"Ah, I see. Your beloved sister has already seen something, has she not? Go, ask her what it is. Find the truth from her."

Then he was gone, fading as a ghost into the swirling white abyss.

Edward Cullen raced through the Alaskan wilderness to demand answers that Alice did not want to give.