Chapter 140

Charlie

When Esme asked to speak to me privately I was at a loss to know what she had to say. Carlisle was leaving and in all honesty I wouldn't be sorry to see the back of him, I had expected he would understand that harsh decisions had to be made when you controlled a species like ours that needed firm handling. I didn't condone violence for its own sake, but I did believe in swift justice and none of the rebel leaders had suffered unduly, Felix made sure of that. I suppose Esme wanted to tender her resignation too although I had pretty much expected that and made arrangements for an election to replace her as soon as she left. So it was a shock when I heard the reason for her visit.

"I'm not leaving Charlie, not stepping down from the council although I know you were expecting it."

"I see, what about Carlisle?"

"He must do as he sees fit, but my conscience is clear, I understand the need to stand up and show we mean business. I told Carlisle and left it to him to decide what to do. You'll be pleased to know he won't go back on his insistence he leaves the council but he will be staying in Volterra with me and I guess that means trouble for you. I'm sure he will try talking others on the committee to changing their stance on law and order."

"Oh, I think we can handle that once Eleazar and Carmen leave he's going to have quite a job on his hands persuading anyone else. Actually I'm glad you are staying Esme, you have a quick mind and I value your ideas."

"Thank you, Charlie."

When she'd gone I couldn't help smiling, the thought of Carlisle being turned on by his mate was quite something but then I guess he had never pushed her to the limit before. I had seen her exasperation when he spoke up at the last meeting. It saved the problem of finding another council member too.

Esme

I had told Carlisle straight out that he was being naive and unreasonable if he thought our kind could be lead by anyone who wasn't prepared to take action where necessary and that I for one had no intention of leaving Volterra, the council needed female input and I intended to supply it along with Athena and the others. He had been speechless at first but when he did speak, trying to get me to change my mind, he found me immovable.

"There's something else too. A young boy who helped us when Alice was imprisoned by the Volturi. He has a sick sister Francesca, I want you to treat her, make her better."

"What's wrong with her? I have no links with any hospitals here, I can't just go strolling in and take over the care of another doctor's patients, there are etiquette's involved."

"Well do whatever you have to but I want you to treat the girl."

"I'm not sure..."

I cut him off,

"Well I am and seeing as you were too busy to worry about Alice at the time you owe her, and me, so do what's necessary but heal that girl."

I traced the boy to his village to find him herding the goats on a steep hillside nearby. He was nervous when he saw me, especially as I had Carlisle with me, but I explained that he was a doctor who I had brought to see his sister. He told us which hospital she was in and we promised to go and see if Carlisle could help her.

"I gave my mother the money and she paid for a doctor to look at her, but the doctor said Francesca is too sick to operate."

"What did they want to do to her?"

Luigi looked at Carlisle uneasily, but I nodded for him to continue,

"He said it is her heart, it's not right, it didn't develop properly and a weakness caused a valve to leak, I didn't really understand, neither did my mother but he said she was too sick to operate on. So my mother stays with her until it's over and my father and I visit as often as we can."

We traveled straight to the hospital and found Luigi's mother sitting at her daughter's bedside, the little girl looked deathly pale except for her lips which were blue. I went in first and explained that I was the lady who had given Luigi money for doing errands for me and that my husband was a doctor who wanted to examine Francesca if that was OK. She was desperate so while I took her down to the restaurant for something to eat Carlisle stayed behind to examine the girl, hoping to do so before he was interrupted by the hospital administration or nursing staff. Luigi's mother was convinced that nothing could be done for her daughter, she was sitting at Francesca's side waiting for her to die. I explained that Carlisle was a very good doctor who would like to help if he could and obtained her permission to treat Francesca if he could. By the time, we got back the nursing staff had alerted Francesca's doctor and he was busy talking to Carlisle in rapid Italian.

It transpired that the doctor was feeling hopeless and was quite happy for Carlisle to do anything he could to help the little girl. Within hours, she had been transported by private ambulance along with her mother to a private facility where Carlisle was able to use his own "staff" to operate. Rosalie and Emmett appeared soon after we arrived and scrubbed up ready to help Carlisle. He couldn't use anyone else because he would be operating at vampire speed. Francesca's only hope was if she didn't have to be unconscious for too long and only Carlisle could operate fast enough. I sat with her mother knowing the operation would be over long before we could inform her without appearing as if something strange had happened. She asked me why a rich family like mine would be interested in a poor Italian family like her own and it was difficult to explain but I told her I had been very grateful to her son who befriended me in a strange town and helped me.

"I do not like him going to Volterra."

"Really? Why is that?"

She looked around as if afraid of being overheard then crossed herself,

"Evil inhabits that town, Mrs Cullen. My grandfather saw the devil there once."

"The devil?"

"Yes, he had long dark hair and red glowing eyes, he was carrying a load no man could lift and then he just vanished but my grandfather said he saw the same man one day just before he died, sixty-five years after the first time and he said the man had not aged at all. I begged Luigi not to go to Volterra, but he is a boy and boys are hard to control, they wander and they think nothing will ever hurt them. Still this time Volterra was good to us, it brought you and your husband to my daughter's bedside."

Two hours later Carlisle appeared to tell her that Francesca would be fine and she burst out crying grabbing his hands and clinging to them as she thanked him over and over. When we finally left after paying for two weeks convalescence for Francesca and a room for her mother to stay with her I thanked Carlisle and he thought I might have changed my mind and might agree to leave Volterra but he was wrong. I would stay here and hopefully I could help others like Luigi's mother and sister and that gave Carlisle something to think about. He could use his medical skills here as well as he could back home in the States.