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Chapter 36

Italy

Bella

When I woke up, we were still over the sea. But outside it had become dark.

Fortunately, Carlisle was able to book a direct flight on such short notice.

I lay leaning against Emmett's chest, and he gently stroked a few strands out of my face.

"Sleep well?", he asked quietly.

I looked around and noticed that almost all the people on the plane were asleep.

I nodded.

"Did something happen while I was sleeping?", I asked.

Maybe Alice had seen something, or Jasper could reach Edward.

But Emmett shook his head.

"In about three hours we will land. You can sleep some more," he whispered.

I shook my head ... I was awake.

If we only had three hours to fly, I must have slept long enough. Edward had flown not much earlier than us. I wonder if he had already landed.

"Alice, do you know what Edward is planning right now?" I asked Alice, who was sitting to my right.

"He wants to go straight to Volterra right after he lands. He doesn't have an exact plan, but he doesn't want to join Aro," she said after her gaze briefly wandered into the distance again.

If he was still on the plane, maybe we could still catch up with him. Hopefully, they hadn't done anything to Rose yet. I wondered what they would do if they discovered me. Emmett was planning to turn me, but I was still afraid.

"I wonder how the Volturi will justify this behavior. After all, they embody the law in our world, and kidnapping and extortion just to get a gift isn't very lawful," Jasper talked next to Alice, more to himself than to anyone else. "I always thought the guards were all with them by choice. But who knows how many they keep and retain by actions like this?", Jasper said.

Carlisle looked at him.

"Aro, Caius and Marcus have a different view of right and wrong. But in the time I've been with them, they've all been there voluntarily," Carlisle said.

Two hours later, Jasper once again tried to reach Edward.

By now, the stewardess was watching more than disapprovingly as he wanted to talk on the phone all the time on the plane.

She was probably too intimidated by the appearance of the five beautiful vampires to say anything against it.

"Edward!", Jasper said, annoyed but relieved. All our eyes were on him. "Why didn't you answer my calls?", he asked annoyed. "I see ... in that case, that means you've already landed now?"

I suspected that Edward had turned off the cell phone during the flight.

"Listen, we'll be there in about an hour, too. Don't do anything stupid and wait for us at the airport," Jasper said. "Yes, ALL of us! You think we're going to let anything happen to Rose or you?" he said angrily.

Edward probably didn't expect the support.

"Just shut up and wait for us."

And then he flipped his phone shut.

We all looked at him.

However, no one asked what Edward had said. Probably, with their super senses, they could also hear Edward's voice on the phone. Now that the encounter was so close, I didn't know how I would react if I saw him. After all, he was going to bite me the last time we had met. And the time before that - that's when I found out he had cheated on me. Should I greet him and pretend that everything was normal? What would he do when he found out about Emmett and me? Actually, he couldn't be mad. He wouldn't have any right to be. After all, he was the one who cheated on me first. Did he even know I was coming?

When we landed an hour later, I decided to just ignore him. I would do anything so that he and Rose were out of danger, but I didn't want to forgive him.

We walked out of the airport towards the parking garage.

And there he stood, as still as only vampires could stand.

The mood was totally weird. But the others ignored the mood and ran to Edward.

"Edward, good thing you waited," Carlisle said first.

Edward's eyes darted to me, but then back to Carlisle, who was now explaining our plan to him.

Meanwhile, Jasper and Alice had disappeared.

I wondered what they were doing.

Then two cars passed us and stopped by us. The windows were blacked out and I couldn't see who it was. Presumably, we were somehow in the way.

That's when Jasper and Alice got out of the Jaguar and the Maserati.

"I'm riding with Alice in the Xe-Roadster!" Emmett said enthusiastically, grabbing me by the arm and pulling me toward the black Jaguar parked behind the champagne-colored Maserati.

"Me, Esmé and Edward are driving the Quattroporte. The rest of you follow us," Carlisle said, getting into the front car.

Alice looked to Jasper.

"A Quattroporte Sport GT-S? Not bad either, but my Jaguar is better."

And she stuck her tongue out at him as we got into the cars.

"Do you still have cars even here in Italy?", I asked, confused.

They probably had a few in each country.

But everyone laughed.

"No, they're stolen. But don't worry, daughter of the Chief. We'll get them back before anyone notices they were gone," Emmett explained from beside me. "And I agree with Alice. She clearly got the better one than you did Jasper, although the Maserati is nothing to sneeze at either," he said admiringly.

What was it they always had with cars?

Carlisle stepped on the gas in the front car and Jasper did the same, following him out of the parking garage.

Italy was a horror as far as traffic was concerned. True, no one drove as murderously through the big cities as we did, but still.

As we slowly drove further into the countryside, the horizon became brighter again.

How did the Volturis even live undiscovered in a country that was glowing with sunshine? I was glad that I wasn't in the car with Edward, because I really didn't feel like being in this situation.

The landscape flew past us as it slowly awoke with the first rays of sunlight.

I've never been to Italy. I've never been outside the U.S., and it was beautiful here.

We drove past some idyllic little towns. Some houses were colorfully painted, and the plaster was peeling off. Flowers hung over the romantic balconies and clotheslines hung between the houses above the narrow streets.

"They're not going to attack me because I'm human, are they?", I asked skeptically.

I wish Carlisle was here to tell me how to act.

"No, I don't see them attacking as long as we can make them understand that we plan to turn you. Carlisle once told me that even with them there are humans who later want to turn them into vampires or ..."

She didn't talk further, but I could imagine what was happening to them.

We were now driving up a small hill.

On its top I recognized a city surrounded by a thick city wall. From down here, only a bell tower could be seen jutting out above the walls. The further up we went; the more house roofs became visible ... all in the same beige stone.

"Welcome to Volterra," Alice said, somewhat condescendingly.