Jane very carefully picked Bella up and jumped down from the roof to join the others, followed closely by Alec who immediately began gathering body parts. Jane set Bella on her unsteady feet close to the porch steps so she could sit if she needed to and walked slowly toward Jaspers body. There was finally silence. All eyes watched Jane with either fear or amusement.
"I had heard that this Jasper was supposed to be the deadliest vampire around. Looks like they were wrong, I always knew Alistair was worse. Or should I say better." She said cheerfully as she winked at Bella and took the head from Alistair's hands and put it next to Alice.
Before she could blink Bella was in Alistair's arms.
"Are you ok hen? Truly? I saw the blood in the flat. I could feel your fear. Did they hurt you anymore? Did they frighten you?" He was so relieved to have her back in his arms. He held her close, kissing her cheeks and forehead over and over.
"I am ok now. They did scare me a little, Carlisle was threatening me with horrible things, but I always knew you would come. I knew you would find me. I love you." She whispered as she clutched his arms and kissed him gently.
"I love you too Iseabail." He responded, returning her kiss. Then standing back he took her ring from his pocket and slid it back on to her finger. He lifted her hand and kissed it.
"I've missed this, I was sure Edward had destroyed it, he was really jealous, furious when he realised I had moved on. Thanks for bringing it back to me. I don't want to ever be apart from you again." She whispered, tears streaming unchecked from her eyes.
"Ssh hen. We'll talk about it later, you won't be apart from me again, I promise, you are safe now." He was wiping her tears away with his thumbs and staring into her eyes with such an intense expression it made Bella's heart soar.
"Sorry, I'm being a baby. These few days have been a lot harder than I thought." She whispered looking down at her clenched hands in embarrassment.
"Nonsense, sweetheart, you have nothing to be sorry for." He whispered holding her close. "You have had a great deal to cope with. I am the one who should be sorry; I broke my promises to you."
"What promises?" Bella asked confused.
"I promised no one would ever hurt you and you have been. I promised you wouldn't have to see the Cullen's again and yet here you are. I am sorry."
Bella laughed.
"You have nothing to be sorry for either." She whispered kissing him gently. "None of this is your fault. They wanted me for my gift. It was going to happen sooner or later."
"Do you have a gift then?" Marcus asked carefully. Drawing the attention of the couple back to the others.
Alistair introduced Bella to Marcus and Felix who kissed her cheeks and hugged her in welcome. Garrett came over with mischief in his eyes for a hug as well. The atmosphere was relaxed now; no one seemed to be in any rush. Bella sat down on the porch steps and looked around. She felt like she could breathe again.
Esme was standing beside Felix, not touching but close. Whenever he moved she did too. He was staring at her with wonder in his eyes, but seemed reluctant to take the final step and touch her. Considering what she had been through it was understandable. Esme herself looked upset and confused. Every so often she would shoot a venomous glare toward Carlisle who was now propped up alongside Rosalie and Alice. Jane and Alec were depositing various other body parts in a large pile next to them all.
"Well hen, do you?"
All eyes were on Bella. The Cullen eyes were filled with anger and hatred. The others interested.
"Yes it appears I do. I managed to protect Esme from Jasper's influence before, but I think I was able to help her after that, she seemed different somehow."
Esme nodded in agreement.
"I don't really understand it but I seem to have more 'thoughts' since Bella got back. It is like I haven't really thought anything for the past years. I have just functioned with a veil over my eyes. Kind of like I was watching someone else doing things, not really taking part. But I can see clearly now, it has gone. What did they do to me?"
Carlisle growled furiously, he didn't want them to reveal his actions. But he was rewarded for his interruption with a kick to the head by Felix which left him face down in the dirt again.
"I will explain everything properly later, when we have more time. Basically he was controlling you. But it is over now Esme, you are safe and he will never control you again." Felix answered reaching for her hand carefully, as though she were made of glass.
"But how has it gone, he is still alive?"
Marcus stepped forward and taking her hands gently he looked her straight in the eye.
"His control is broken because you have met your mate, your real one. You were never Carlisle's mate, he tried to force a mating bond on you and it worked for a time. He did have a mate once, he rejected her and she died before he ever met you. The man is a pompous fool."
That revelation was met with gasps from the Cullen's and an involuntary whimper from Carlisle, who had been propped up again.
"She's dead?" He asked with an anguished cry.
"Why do you care?" Marcus snarled savagely, grabbing Carlisle around the throat and hoisting his limbless trunk into the air. "Why do you care that she is dead? Why do you care at all? She was desolate, inconsolable after you rejected her, she killed herself. All that potential, all that joy and love of life lost because you are a selfish, self-obsessed, self-righteous fool." Marcus's voice had risen to a roar by the end of his speech. He threw Carlisle away in disgust.
"You could never understand or accept the wondrous gift you had been given. You could never have hoped to deserve her, as you could never deserve Esme. You disgust me Carlisle." Marcus turned away. He had spoken with such scorn, in such a scathing tone that Carlisle could do nothing but look ashamed, not something Marcus had ever expected to see.
Esme was sobbing quietly in Felix's arms. Bella felt so sorry for her, to learn she had been controlled and used, somehow Bella suspected there could be worse revelations to come.
"Right" said Alistair taking control. "Let's get on with this so we can get after Edward. Garrett do you know when he left?"
"Yeah he shot out when your girl here picked a fight with Jasper." Garrett answered sitting down next to Bella and wrapping an arm around her shoulder. "That was after she stripped for him and tried to seduce Carlisle."
Bella blushed furiously and stammered something about trying to distract and divide them. However her explanations were drowned out by the guffaw's of laughter from Alistair, Garrett, Felix and Marcus, even Esme was giggling. Jane and Alec were quietly laughing from their position near the dismembered Cullen's.
"Oh come on now hen. Don't be embarrassed. We are not laughing at you, just that they actually fell for it." Alistair said while trying to calm his chuckles. "You did what you had to, It was very brave and quite clever really. But dangerous, so don't do it again okay." He kissed her on the top of the head with a chuckle and muttered something like "only you hen."
"So back to Eddie. He ran about five / six hours ago, headed that way." Garrett said pointing in the direction Edward had gone. "I felt it would be better to stay here and keep an eye on Bella. The way she was behaving she definitely needed the chaperone." He smiled cheekily at her and squeezed her shoulder while the others laughed again. Bella growled at him making him laugh too. "Hey we are family sweetheart, I can strip for you later if it makes you feel better."
"Oh god! No, just no. Ok" she said with her head in her hands. "You are as bad as him." She nodded toward Alistair who was laughing quietly.
"You haven't seen anything yet hen" Alistair chuckled with a wiggle of his eyebrows. "Ok so Eddie ran away like a girl because they threatened him with me, oh dear."
"No point trying to track him, he has too much head start." Felix commented. "Besides he's probably cowering under a rock somewhere hoping Daddy will change his mind."
"I'll find him." Alistair said menacingly. "No matter where he is."
"In the meantime let's get these arseholes put back together so Jane and Alec can get them back to Volterra. I don't really care what happens to them after that. This one however," he said slapping Carlisle of the back of the head. "Will never see the outside of the citadel again. No matter what."
Alistair turned to Carlisle and bending over looked him in the eye before speaking slowly and precisely to him.
"You are going to die Carlisle, publically and humiliatingly. No one will help you, no one will speak for you and no one will save you. But I can promise one thing, I'll be there to watch."
Carlisle's eyes widened with fear, he finally realised it was over.
The vampires moved quickly repairing and restraining the Cullen coven. Bella watched in morbid fascination as one by one their limbs hissed and sizzled into place, they didn't struggle to be free they just stood their expressions turning blank as Alec's gift took away their senses. Alice was whimpering while frantically searching the future for a way out of this. She looked terrified and pleaded with them all not to hurt her. Jasper, Emmett and Rosalie were silent, resigned perhaps but not going to give anyone the satisfaction of seeing them cower. The last one 'under' was Carlisle. He looked heartbroken and afraid, he was pleading with Esme to help him, to help her children. Not to forsake him. But she just stood stony faced at Felix's side and ignored him.
Garrett and Marcus helped Jane and Alec transport the Cullen's to the airport while Felix and Alistair stayed at the house with Esme and Bella. Felix had tried to persuade Esme to go with the others to the safety of Volterra but she refused. She didn't want to be parcelled off into the unknown. She may not know Alistair and Garrett well but at least they were familiar faces. She was drawn to Felix but didn't know him, she needed time and familiarity. Felix couldn't bring himself to order or force her after what she had been through. So he just begged her to stay close to him and to keep herself safe. She smiled softly at him, this huge man who was pleading with her.
"I'll be careful I promise, but I don't want to be alone with strangers just now."
"I don't suppose it's worth asking you to go with them too, is it hen?" Alistair asked Bella before the others left. "We don't know what we will be up against; it would be stupid to assume Edward will be on his own."
"No I am staying with you." She answered fiercely, clutching his arm.
"I will keep her safe. Alistair." Esme said with conviction. They stared at each other for a few moments before he nodded.
"Very well but you stay close hen, and no stripping." He laughed as she blushed again. He was going to make the most of this one.
They went into the house so Bella could get her bags and have some food. Esme gathered what few belongings she wanted to keep. While they were doing this Alistair and Felix smashed up the furniture, taking great delight in obliterating Edward's piano. Perhaps such mindless destruction was beneath them, but it felt damn good. Besides it would look more like vandals to the police.
Then they moved the cars they were going to use to a safe distance before they turned on the gas of the stove and oven and lit rags pushed into the petrol tanks of the cars they left behind. Garrett and Marcus got back just in time to film what was going on and watch as first the garage blew up followed by the rest of the house.
"All I need now are some marsh mallows." Bella said while warming her hands on the fire with a huge grin on her face. Even Esme smiled, watching her old life burn felt cathartic to her.
"Come on hen, let's get out of here before the fire is noticed."
They piled into the cars and took off away from the burning house. Bella fell asleep almost instantly, the stress of the past days finally catching up with her. After driving for a few hours Alistair pulled over at a motel and booked a couple of rooms. Bella needed a shower and a bed. And he needed her. The others could entertain themselves for a while.
Speaking to Garrett quickly he informed Alistair they were going to hunt, Esme was going to try humans, she wanted a criminal though, no one she considered an innocent. It seemed she was disillusioned with Carlisle and his life style. Felix and Marcus had told her everything; she was understandably very upset and angry. The focus of her anger was directed toward Carlisle and Edward. They had chosen her and done this to her. She was feeling used and betrayed, but oddly her pity was directed towards Clara for being so cruelly rejected and to Bella who could have shared her fate, not herself, perhaps that was a measure of the woman she had been and could now be again.
Alistair went to get Bella some food while she showered and she was in her pyjamas waiting in the bedroom for him when he got back. She looked tired and pale but smiled warmly as he entered the room. He looked at her head wound which was healing ok but swiped it quickly with the tongue making Bella hiss as the venom set to work healing it instantly.
Although she was tired, Bella felt a lot better in herself and began eating her food with gusto as she listened to her mate describe what had happened to him while she was gone. It was surprising to her that he had felt her fear and pain. He thought it was partly their bond and partly his gift, he was just very attuned to her. But before she could sleep Alistair wanted to know all about what had happened to her as well. As she spoke he kept touching her, as though to reassure himself she was really there, a hand on her arm, her leg, a kiss to her temple, her cheek. Bella found the attention wonderfully soothing and snuggled into his arms as she launched into her tale.
She told him the whole story, leaving nothing out, describing in detail her row with Edward at the flat, the plane ride and her reunion with Carlisle. She told him all about her flirting and her idea to use Jasper's gift against them all. She went into great detail about her arguments with Jasper and her opinion of his fighting ability. How the Cullen's back tracked faster than she would have thought possible when they learned about her mate, but not who he was. She told him everything up until he arrived.
Alistair was impressed by her resilience and ingenuity as well as her guts in telling it to them straight. He found a great deal of what she told him both terrifying and hilarious in equal measure and shuddered as well as laughed a great deal throughout the tale. Her plan could well have worked, the Cullen clan was full of such selfish personalities. They would have jumped at the chance to ally themselves with 'a shield'. He was impressed by the control she had on her gift already, his Iseabail was going to be a force to be reckoned with when turned. He asked why she had "stripped" for Jasper so she explained, it was a spur of the moment thing designed to wind him up, she had wanted him to lose control of his gift and start projecting. Alistair laughed loudly as she described dropping the towel for Jasper and then hiding in the bathroom while she pulled herself together. He could picture the scene as she described the men drooling as she got Carlisle to rub cream into her tattoo and then flashed her arse at them. It was hilarious. He wasn't even remotely jealous or angry now it was over. She had taken some silly risks and it could have all gone horribly wrong. But now she was in his arms and safe he didn't have it in him to reprimand her or ask her not to do it again. It was the way she was, headstrong, independent and rash. Bella was his mate no question and she was perfect for him.
He couldn't blame them for wanting her either. She was a saucy minx his Iseabail.
"What tattoo hen?" he asked when they had finally stopped laughing.
"I got this as a gift for you." She whispered as she pulled off her vest top to reveal the tattoo of his clan crest on her ribs, the same as the crest she was wearing around her neck.
"It's beautiful hen. I love it." He said in an awed whisper as he kissed her gently.
"I remembered you saying you wanted me stamped as yours." She whispered as his arms slid around her. "Well now I am. I wanted you to take care of it for me. I wasn't going to ask Carlisle."
"Certainly not." He whispered against her skin as he kissed and licked the tattoo making her wriggle and squirm. His lips made their way to hers as he removed their clothes. They made love slowly and sensuously, exploring and re-claiming each other thoroughly. By the time Bella drifted into a contented sleep snuggled against Alistair's chest she had a fresh bite mark on her neck proclaiming to all, that she was his.