Chapter Thirty Seven

Aro

Things were very quiet these days which was a blessing. Our world didn't realize how much we craved peace, a chance to relax and enjoy the beauties of the world. I like to travel but hadn't been able to for so long for fear of problems developing as soon as I turned my back. Caius, well Caius enjoyed the tumult of war but even he was looking weary, anything in too large a quantity could be wearing even wonderful things.

Marcus had retired to the archives where he was cataloging everything we had collected over the centuries and things that still appeared in Volterra occasionally, gifts from some of the larger covens we turned a blind eye too so long as they didn't step over the line. I was thinking about a visit to my old friend Carlisle, it had been far too long since I spoke to him but of course as often happens once you think of someone you hear from them or news about them.

I received a call late one evening and at first I was surprised by my caller,

"Well, I was of the understanding that you were not interested in us."

My caller ignored my irony and explained his reasons for calling. As he continued to speak I found myself sink back into my chair understanding that my holiday would have to be put on hold yet again.

"And you tell me she knows everything?"

When he rang off I closed my eyes cursing under my breath, I now had a serious problem on my hands. A human female who knew our secret and was still alive. This was against all our laws and meant instant death for everyone involved. I had to move very carefully or my only true friend would lay dead very soon, along with the rest of his family.

After considering my options I rang and asked Felix to join me only to be told that Caius had sent him on a mission to Bulgaria. Left with no other alternative I picked up my phone and slowly dialled a number I hadn't used before, one that was only for emergencies and heard my friend's voice as he answered,

"Aro? What's the problem? I take it this is an emergency?"

"Yes it is my friend. I had a very worrying call from someone a little while ago telling me about a human girl called Bella Swan. I take it you are familiar with that name my friend?"

He hesitated but then sighed,

"Yes I am aware of the girl."

"Then I take it the information I was given was all true? That the girl knows our secret and is still alive? In fact visiting your house on a regular basis?"

"Yes it is but she will not give away our secret Aro. She was Edward's girlfriend."

I picked up immediately on his choice of words,

"Was?"

"Yes they have now broken up but the girl is still a friend of the family."

"And you can give me your word that the girl is trustworthy?"

"Yes I can."

"Carlisle you are a fool, what am I supposed to do? You have broken our law and you know the punishment is death, for all of you and the girl?"

"Yes I do but you wouldn't have rung me if you were sending the guard for us."

"My dear Carlisle, I would be sending The Major not the guard but you are right. I value your friendship and I think our world would be far less interesting without you in it."

"So what do you intend doing?"

"My best to save you my friend but it is not going to be easy. You have to leave your present location and do not return to it. The call came directly to me so my brothers are unaware of your transgression. Hopefully I can keep it a secret but as I say you must leave the area now."

"And Bella?"

"You care that much for this girl? Even though she is no longer with Edward?"

"Yes, she is almost like another daughter."

"Then why did you not change her?"

"It must be her decision Aro, I would not force it on anyone as you well know. Besides her father is the Chief of Police here in Forks."

I groaned, things just kept getting worse!

"In that case she will be watched by someone I can trust, if she remains silent then she will be safe from us. But if she speaks then I will have no choice but to kill her."

"We'll leave immediately Aro, thank you for this warning, I appreciate the risk you are taking out of friendship."

"Do not make me regret my actions Carlisle, you have put me in a very delicate and awkward position."

After putting down the phone I leaned back again and steepled my fingers thinking about the dangers my actions could bring both to the Cullens and myself, potentially our whole world. I thought the best thing might be to give the Cullens plenty of time to move away and forget about the girl and then have her quietly done away with. The girl simply couldn't be allowed to live, that would be much too dangerous but there was no need for Carlisle to know that unless it became absolutely necessary.

I would wait for Felix to return and ask him to watch the girl, make sure she was keeping her promise. He could be relied on to keep his peace, he was loyal to me and had been since I changed him as he lay dying on that battlefield in Greece so long ago. It was typical of Carlisle and his strange family to get themselves into this kind of a mess but I would save them if I could. Of course it meant killing the informer but that couldn't be helped, if we couldn't have him then his value to the Volturi was nil.

It was a good job Caius was away for a few days chasing one of his women I suspected although we never discussed his infidelities. He even thought that his wife Athenadora was unaware, a stupid assumption to make when you were married to a highly intelligent woman but she allowed him his sport thus far. I just wondered what it would take to finally push her over the edge? I looked forward to finding out.

Marcus was no problem, he spent most of his life hiding in the archives away from me. Poor Marcus, bound to the man who had murdered his wife. Sometimes I regretted my actions but it was far too late to worry about that now. Marcus may even have forgiven me by now or forgotten with all the information he crammed his head with. No, Caius was the only danger to the Cullens and he was in ignorance so with the Cullens out of the way the problem simply vanished with them. It was all a mystery to me, vampires wanting to live among humans was bad enough but to then befriend one? Well it was odd but then Carlisle Cullen was a very strange and remarkable man, it was just a shame he wasn't seen in the same light by my brothers.

Carlisle

Aro's call came as a shock to me, who had told the Volturi about Bella? I could think of three candidates, Nathaniel, Rose or Edward himself. He had been angry enough when he left to do something stupid but stupid enough to condemn us all to death? I doubted it, Rose either unless she had bargained her life for ours, it seemed unlikely, which only left Nathaniel yet he hadn't struck me as a vindictive or stupid man. He had been made welcome in our home so why would he ring the Volturi to tell them something that would get his host and family destroyed?