Author's note- If you have not yet read Reajusting, you will have missed many key points to this story. So i strongly suggest you read that one first:) Enjoy! I'm so excited for this new story!!!
This first part may seem a bit repetitive. But i wanted to portray the fact that Raphael isn't evil. He's desperate.
Disclaimer. I own nothing of Twilight, New Moon, or Eclipse.
BPOV
"Why are you doing this to me?" My words seemed much less powerful than they had sounded in my mind. Raphael's mouth contorted in discomfort.
"I didn't have a choice, bird." Not good enough. The anger pulsing beneath my skin surprised me. He had better have a hell of a lot better reason than that for kidnapping me.
"Tell me." The voice that came from me was stronger now, braced with the rage. He sighed and pressed his face into his hands.
"They- they were going to kill her." His voice shook now. Her? Lindy. The Volturi was going to punish Lindy the way Edward had hoped to be punished. "What else could I have done?"
I answered in silence. I wouldn't have known what to do. I might actually have done the same for Edward, or Alice, or Emmett, or Esme, or Carlisle, probably even for Rose. I would have sacrificed myself for them. For my love, for my siblings.
"She's my sister." Both his hands muffled his words now and small heaves of his chest made the phrases nearly impossible to understand. "She's the only thing I have left of being human. She's been beside me forever." I cringed away from my captor. Slightly repulsed by the sight of him weeping. He was saving one he loved by offering another, a stranger, in her place. I meant nothing to him. I was of no significance to him, simply a trading token. But didn't he realize that I had people that I loved? That loved me? That I did mean something to others?
As the fortress walls punctured the distant horizon I felt my hope dwindle irrefutably. There would be no saving now. There would be no escape now. All exit ramps had been severed, all fire escapes engulfed in flames. My fire fighters had little or no chance now, the barrier between them and me growing exponentially by the second.
The green hills rolled by serenely as I began tearing away at my fingernails. More time. I needed more time. Why did everything always come down to deadlines? How could time seem so boundless yet so limiting in the same moment?
I needed more time to prevent the incorrect ending to my story. The flames of revenge burnt much differently than the flames of passion. I didn't want to be tainted by the hearth of replacement and duty; I wanted the preservation of an endless devotion. I wanted Edward to make me the same as him, an equal, for eternity, for all time.
Was it ironic that I wished now to escape from all time? That I only wanted forever my way? And because it had been ill destined from the beginning, fate had twisted the desired conclusion to my life around on me? My one and greatest desire had turned to bite me in the butt, or neck in this case.
And now as the back entrance to the city opened creakily to welcome the running vehicle I took a deep breath, holding it in my lungs as tightly as possible. My cheeks and lungs burned with effort as I suppressed the well of tears beneath my eyes. Too late to cry. Water couldn't help the flames that awaited me.
The stone was colder than I remembered, the grasp on my arm tighter than before, the sound of my footsteps more hollow, the dripping sound of water echoed more loudly…but the faces had remained the same. The billowing capes and scarlet irises hadn't changed. The eerie cackle from Felix made my heart attempt to dive out of my chest as I was dragged through the underground tunnel.
I was pushed unceremoniously through a dark, ancient, and thick wooded door. Aro's awaiting smile made the lump in my throat tighten, nauseating me further. There was one piece of furniture in the chamber, a small black chair. I fell immediately to my knees as the freezing hands of the Volturi guards released me. The sniggers from behind me made me shiver.
I pressed myself up from the floor with some difficulty. I avoided Aro's direct gaze, but out of my peripheral vision it was easy to see his smile widen.
"Please Bella, sit," Aro motioned towards the chair, his voice smooth as silk. His piercing leer made me feel penetrable; I felt the goose bumps raise the hairs on my arms. I took to rubbing my arms with my hands trying to caress the chill of his stare from my skin. "Cold, Bella?" I shook my head from side to side, my eyes still set on the floor. He chuckled gaily.
"Best for you to get used to it. Soon enough you'll be cold to everything, all of the time." Each word slit through my heart, making my chest weaken until it was resting on my thighs. My head hung between my knees. This was not how it was supposed to be. This was not what I had wanted. This was not what I had dreamed of.
This…this was Hell. The Devil's crimson eyes stared greedily into mine when I finally met his focus; I flinched from the contact but could not pull my eyes from the face of haunting perfection.
Author's note- I hope you all enjoyed the very first chapter. Leave me a wondrous piece of encouragement.