Three rows of vampires lined the far wall, watching the scene unfold before them. The desperation in Jane's eyes made it difficult to watch, but Aro stood tall- an unmovable fortress in the face of her debilitating fear. Beside his sister, Alec was as still as a statue. He looked more like a frightened little boy, rather than the deadly, ancient being he truly was.

"My people!" Marcus' raspy voice bellowed throughout the hall. "It is a sad grievance that we have come together on this day. Two members of our family have committed a terrible crime against another respected member of our coven." His ruby gaze scanned the surrounding audience. "We are here today to right that wrong."

No one said anything; the shock of what was about to take place was too great.

"I beseech you to remember this moment, because, my people, this is what happens when someone turns against one of our own." Turning to Aro, Marcus took a step back. "Whenever you're ready, brother."

Alec's eyes were closed when he went to stand in front of him, and it was a challenge not to call him out on his cowardliness, but Aro refrained. "You're going to pay for what you did," he hissed. "The pain you inflicted on Bella will be nothing compared to the pain you will receive before you die."

Clicking his fingers, Aro smiled as part of the Guard came to his side. Eyes flicking back and forth, Alec watched the small group warily, fingers twitching by his sides. Locking eyes with him, Aro let his smile hold. "Now," he commanded.

10 vampires descended on Alec, giving the twin no time to prepare for the attack, though it wouldn't have mattered given the fact that Ken had him trapped in place. Jane's scream exploded from out of her mouth, the blast of it hitting Aro straight in the face. He could feel Bella's heartrate accelerate under his palm, though she kept completely silent.

"Please!" Alec cried out, but the only reply was Jane's whimpering.

In mere seconds, there wasn't much left of the once powerful twin; huge holes took the place of ivory skin, the smell of burning incense perfumed the air. The fire that had been lit by Alec's feet slowly climbed it's way up his mutilated body, turning his previous screams into a frenzy of screeches. The flames leapt up his legs, quickly reaching for his chest, and the effect was horrifying at best. His body was shaking; his eyes were rolling back into his head- the fire didn't care that its victim was being devoured alive.

Shifting from one foot to the other, Bella turned her head in the opposite direction. He could sense her uneasiness by the way she tightened her grip on his hand and by the way she was holding her breath.

The need to reassure her was too strong for him to ignore, so when he moved his body to partially shield her from what was happening, he moved his arm to wrap around her waist as well. "It will be over soon, Bella."

The only response she gave was a sharp nod of her head. It was then that Jane let loose a terrible cry and it was all Aro could do not to look away himself. He wasn't moved by pity or compassion, although, Jane's sobs touched a place deep inside him, because he could only imagine how hard it would be to lose someone you loved more than life. Alec, however, deserved the pain and the suffering, more than anyone Aro knew.

"Al-Alec," Jane yelled. "Alec, no!"

There was nothing left of the vampire.

Just ash on the cold floor.

Moving to stand in front of the crowd, Caius stared, unseeing, at the far wall. "It is finished."

Bella hid her face in the collar of his button down shirt. "I want to go."

The vampires were moving towards Jane, and Marcus and Caius were eyeing him and Bella, but it didn't prevent him from making a hasty exit. They hadn't even made it to the staircase when the sound of Jane's cursing was suddenly cut off, leaving the castle with an eerie, unsettling silence. He felt very little triumph, though he did feel a sense of relief because he knew Bella would be more safe within the walls of their prison.

He discreetly glanced over at the young woman beside him and he couldn't help but notice the way she seemed to have to drag herself up the stairs. Her eyes were downcasr; her mouth was pinched into a tight line, giving her the appearance of someone who was at their breaking point.

"Are you alright?"

Letting loose a deep breath, she bit her lip. "I thought I would feel," shaking her head she, laughed, "relieved."

Encouraging her to stop with a gentle hand, he turned to face her head-on. Gently cupping her jaw, he reveled in the way her heart fluttered under his touch. 'What do you feel, Bella? What is going on in that head of yours?"

She swallowed before moving closer. "I feel lost." Hesitant, trembling hands, crept around his waist. "I feel less like myself every minute I'm here," she murmured.

There wasn't a word strong enough that could describe the pain those words inflicted on him. Torment made a home in his chest. He'd never felt more dead than he did in that moment. Every moment he'd spent in her company raced through his mind, each memory hitting him like a sucker punch. Clenching his hands into fists, he closed his eyes and begged for mercy.

His unspoken plea was granted in the form of two warm hands sliding up his chest. "Hey," Bella coaxed. When he refused to open his eyes, she dug her fingers into the silken fabric of his shirt. "Look at me, Aro."

The first thing his gaze lit upon was the soft expression on her face. Her eyes searched his, making him feel completely naked in the face of her obvious scrutiny. Sighing, she adjusted her grip to pull him closer. "I keep hurting you with my words."

Without even thinking about it, he found himself shaking his head in disagreement.

"And you keep trying to protect me from the truth," she continued.

"There's only one truth in my world," he replied, his voice suspiciously hoarse. Like the pathetic fool he was, he let his head fall to rest in the crook of her neck. "And that is that I need you in a way that can't be rationalized."

Her head fell back, allowing him to press his lips against the smooth patch of skin right under her jaw. In a flash, he was staring her down, growling like the animal he'd become over the years. "You are my life. If that makes me crazy, then I'll embrace the insanity. I simply don't care."

Panting, she held his gaze. "You make me want to save you when you say things like that."

An instinctual need to mold her body to his overwhelmed his senses and he didn't fight it. Tugging her into his arms he raced up the rest of the stairs, barreled his way into their room, and locked the door behind them. "I saw you and my world finally had meaning," he said as he laid her out on the bed. "I'll do whatever I have to do, Bella. I'll die for you; I'll live in this hellhole for you, and I'll love every minute of it as long as you're here with me."

Writhing underneath him, she wrapped her arms around his shoulders, holding onto him with a strength that managed to surprise him. "Stop. You have to stop."

"Why?"

"Because it's too much. I feel too much when I'm around you. You-" she gasped when he sucked her bottom lip into his mouth.

Her taste was exquisite, being sweeter than any blood he'd ever ingested. Wanting to see her reaction to the mild assault, he leant back and fought back the shiver when he took in her flushed cheeks and her swollen lower lip. What he couldn't fight was the smile that overtook his face. "You're far too beautiful for a monster like me," he said softly as he pushed a strand of her hair out of the way.

Smiling wanly, she looked up at him from under her lashes. "Somehow I don't think you're going to let that stop you."

Moving to the side was difficult, but it was necessary for him to stay in control of the lust coursing through his veins. "It hadn't occurred to me," he admitted with a forced smirk. He couldn't find the courage to let her see how insecure he was in regards to her.

Truth was, she probably already knew he was an emotional mess when it came to her.

Her fingers rubbed back and forth across the arm that rested across her body. "Do you know what scares me the most?" Not waiting for a reply, she stopped rubbing his arm and chose instead to hold onto it for dear life. "I'm most afraid of my emotions when I'm around you. It's like I'm always drowning. My lungs feel like they're going to burst and my heart races at an impossible speed, and it doesn't matter how hard I try to fight it, but the scariest truth of all is that I feel safe when I'm with you."

And there it was. The cruelest, most disgusting thing in any universe- hope.