We ran quickly through
the dark streets of Volterra, careful to avoid the few humans still
hanging around; the night was very warm, and the hum of air
conditioners filled the otherwise silent city.
Marcus held my hand, leading me through the maze like alleys and back ways until we reached a small wooden door set into the city wall. He grinned at me, and I had to smile back. Anticipation was building in me at the thought of leaving the city for the first time in over two months.
Without a word, he
pushed open the door and pulled me through it. I took a deep breath
as a soft breeze washed over us, full of promise and the warm aroma
of the Italian countryside.
“Anything good?”
Marcus teased, and I laughed.
“Not yet. We might
have to go a little further from the city. Animals don’t tend to
get too close to humans if they can help it.”
I sniffed at the breeze
again. A whisper of something familiar drifted in from the east.
Marcus released my hand.
“I haven’t got a
clue what we’re looking for, so you had better lead.”
I nodded and began to
run again, following the scent as it got stronger and stronger.
Marcus drifted behind me, seeming to have no more substance than a
ghost. He was so quiet, it was almost like hunting alone.
As I ran, I began to
get myself back into the old way of doing things. It felt good just
to run; to feel the wind in my hair and the ground flying under my
feet. My instincts were taking over as the scent came closer. Deer;
not quite the same as I was used to, but similar enough that it
wasn’t totally repulsive. I was proud of myself; I had thought that
I would find the old scents unsavoury after the rich smell of human
blood, but my body seemed to recognize what was right, what I wanted.
Eventually I cornered the herd. They tried to run, but I was faster, leaping onto the back of the largest one and closing my teeth around its neck. The familiar flavour washed over my tongue, bringing with it a thousand memories of home. I sucked greedily until my kill ran dry, then sprang up and chased after the others.
I took down half the
herd before I felt full. Letting the rest of them escape, I sat down,
leaning against a tree, and let out a contented sigh.
“Good?”
I smiled up at Marcus,
who was balanced on a tree branch above my head, watching me with
interest.
“Very,” I said,
licking my lips. He made a face.
“They smell
disgusting. I honestly thought I was going to vomit.”
I laughed. “It does
take some getting used to. Carnivores are much better; more like
humans.”
“You have many
predators near you?”
I nodded. “Mountain
lion mostly, but the odd grizzly bear. Emmet likes to wrestle them.”
I smiled as I thought of my carefree big brother.
Marcus tilted his head,
curious. “What was your first kill?” he asked, just as casually
as if he was asking what my name was.
“Mountain lion. It
would have been elk, but I got, er... distracted.”
“Distracted?”
Marcus dropped down next to me, leaning back against the tree as
well.
“Hikers. It was a
case of wrong place, wrong time. It could have been disastrous if I
had been alone.”
He nodded, but didn’t
push me. “Any particular reason why your brother feels the need to
wrestle grizzlies?”
I smiled, grateful for
the subject change.
“I guess it has
something to do with his change. When Rosalie found him... he got
caught by a grizzly out in the woods. It was just about to finish him
off when she arrived.”
Marcus looked confused.
“She fought a bear to get to a human she didn’t even know?”
I nodded. “She saved
his life; carried him over a hundred miles back to Carlisle, knowing
she wouldn’t be able to change him herself. She says it was selfish
of her, to doom him to this life, but I know she never regretted it.
He’s her soul mate.”
He seemed to
contemplate that for a moment. I sat quietly, letting my hunt work
all the stress out of my body. My stomach was full to bursting point.
Eventually, Marcus
spoke.
“I knew Carlisle was
compassionate, but... I never realised how truly good he is.
To save that boy’s life, when he didn’t even know him...” He
shook his head. “I just can’t imagine it.”
I smiled. “Carlisle
saved all of them. Not just Emmet; Rose and Esme and Edward too.
They’d all be dead if it weren’t for him. I suppose I would be
too...” I trailed off, remembering.
“How so?” Marcus
asked. “Did he change you too?”
I shook my head. “If
he had never changed Edward, who knows what would have happened to
me. Now that I think about it, I probably would have been crushed by
a van not long after I moved to Forks.”
His eyes questioned me,
and I struggled to recall the dim human sights and sounds. I closed
my eyes to help my concentration.
“It was very cold
that day. I remember... it snowed the day before, and then rained,
and the rain froze overnight. My dad put snow chains on my truck so I
would be safe, but I didn’t realise until I got to school.” I
took a deep breathe, continuing in a whisper.
“I was stood by the
back corner of the truck when I heard a screeching noise. Tyler, a
boy in my class, hit a patch of ice too fast, and his van started
skidding across the lot... heading straight for me. I remember that
Edward was there... two cars down. I closed my eyes... and something
hit me. Not the van, something else. I was knocked down; my head hit
the side walk. I didn’t realise Edward was there until he swore in
my ear.”
Marcus chuckled and I
gave a weak smile in response.
“He put his hand out
and stopped the van. It started to swing around the truck bed. My
legs would have been crushed, but Edward held the van up and moved
them out of the way. I didn’t know what he was at the time, and he
spent the rest of the day trying to convince me that I hit my head
too hard and imagined it. We didn’t talk for about a month
afterwards...” I sighed.
Marcus seemed to be
thinking about something.
“I’m curious to
hear more of your history. Really I only know Carlisle’s, and I’ve
always wondered where all of you came from.” He smiled at me.
“Would you tell me? I’ve heard the stories of your life together,
but never the things that came before. How did Carlisle save the
others?”
I looked at him. His
burgundy eyes were earnest, curious; he really wanted to hear all
this.
“Well... he found
Edward first. It was Chicago in 1918...”
Over the next half an hour, leaning against the tree in the middle of nowhere, I told Marcus our entire family history, from Edward’s transformation to Renesmee’s birth and my own change. He listened, silent the whole time, saving his questions for the end. I answered them as best I could while we ran back to the city.
Chelsea met us at the back door to the tower, holding the thick black robes we had left behind. She told us that Aro had asked for us to go to him as soon as we returned. When we entered the great hall, Aro came straight to me and took my hand. I peeled back my shield, careful to only let him see the hunt before I dropped it. He looked at me curiously; I said I still had trouble keeping it up for long periods of time. In fact, I had got much better at lifting my shield, holding it completely away from me for up to 10 minutes at a time with no difficulty.
For two months my life continued in the same pattern. Once a week I would go hunting with Marcus. Each time, I would show Aro everything that happened. I began missing things, important things; Nessie’s second birthday; my own 21st;Halloween; thanksgiving. Christmas was fast approaching, only two days away, when a very excited Marcus arrived at my chamber door one evening.
“Pack your bags Isabella. You’re going home.”
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