Chapter Seven
The Terror in Volterra
Grace Cullen-Swan

From Seattle to Atalanta, from Atlanta to Rome, and from Rome to Florence, Italy. Alice hadn't received any visions of Edward, he had apparently decided to suffer a day of loathing himself for causing Bella's death before going to ask to join her.

The moment we touched down in Florence, Alice and I sprung from our seats. I practically dragged Bella off of the plane and to the bathroom to change while I sent Alice to get us a car.

Which, just so happened to be a bright yellow newest model porche.

"Seriously, could you be less inconspicuous next time?" I laughed at Alice as I opened the passenger door.

"I'm guessing you didn't rent this car?" Bella asked as she climbed into the backseat while I got in the passenger side.

"I figured you wouldn't be opposed to grand theft auto." Alice teased her.

"Not today." Bella nodded, looking like the panic she had for Edward was about to consume her.

"Let's get moving." I told Alice, and she took off speeding down the major road of Volterra. "Marcus said he would make sure Edward was denied, and I trust him, but that doesn't guarantee that Edward won't do something foolish to anger Aro." I sighed deeply, my own worry for my son settling into the pit of my stomach.

We were just nearing the actual city of Volterra when Alice swerved uncharacteristically, and I caught the wheel and steered us through traffic while she watched her vision carefully.

"What? What do you see?" Bella asked her, sitting up from the backseat between Alice and I.

"They refused him." Alice nodded, and I sighed in relief.

"So...?" Bella prompted, noticing Alice's still worried expression.

"He's going to make a scene." She frowned, having already expected it. "Show himself to the humans." She clarified for Bella's sake.

"No." She gasped breathlessly. "When?"

"He's going to wait until noon, when the suns at its highest." Alice answered, coming out of her vision and frowning at the clock.

We only had ten minuets.

"Alice you've got to hurry up." Bella stressed.

"There's Volterra." I pointed out to Bella, my nerves going haywire.

Once we got into the city itself, Alice had a hard time navigating around all of the red robed people as she blared her horn and inched her way through the streets.

"Why are they all in red?" Bella asked.

"San Marcos day festival. The celebration of the expulsion of vampires from the city. It's the perfect setting. The Volturi will never let him get far enough to reveal himself." Alice explained.

"I hadn't even realized what day it was." I sighed, knowing we wouldn't make it in time if we kept with this pace.

"We have five minuets!" Bella gasped. "We don't have time for a celebration".

"I know, Bella, just breathe." Alice tried to calm her down.

"Pull over." I ordered Alice, and she quickly pulled off into an alleyway.

"Grace?!" Bella panicked as I got out of the car, throwing my hood up and sunglasses on to cover my skin. "What are you doing?" She asked as I ushered her to get out of the car.

"Giving us our best chance." I sighed, having her put on a jacket so I could put the hood up and get sunglasses on her face. "I'm going to cover you with my gift to make you appear to be a vampire to other vampires. Go find Edward, if the Volturi catches you, you might fool them enough for them to let you both go." I explained to her quickly.

"Are you coming with me?" She worried.

"Bella you're the only one who can go. If he hears either of us coming he'll hear our thoughts and rush into it. Run to the clock tower, go!" Alice pointed her in the right direction and after a quick hug for me she took off running through the crowd.

"I've got to stay in range of her or I'll lose contact with the illusion." I told Alice.

"Here, go off down this alleyway. It should wind its way over to the clock tower so you'll stay out of sight but still close to Bella. I'll work my way back around down the opposite ally." Alice told me, rushing off down the ally across from us after making sure the Porsche was out of sight as much as possible and locked.

"Be careful!" I called out to her before running off down the ally in front of me.

I got caught up in the large crowd, so by the time I made it to the ally beside the clock tower, Alice had already managed to beat me there.

"What a happy reunion." Janes voice rang out, interrupting Edward and Bella, and Alice pressed her fingers to her lips and motioned for me to stay put as she walked quietly to the doors.

"Bella, go enjoy the festivities." Edward told her gently, trying to get her away from the Volturi.

"She's coming with us." Jane ordered.

"No way in-"

"Now now, we wouldn't want to ruin the celebration  would we?" Alice giggled, interrupting them as she stepped into the doors of the clock tower.

"The masters have requested all of your presences in the thrown room." Jane droned. "And I do mean all, Miss. Cullen." She added, before my vision went dark.

When I regained some consciousness, I was still blinded and my neck was in severe pain, so I assumed my head had been partially decapitated. I could tell I was being dragged on marble floor, following after Bella, Edward, and Alice as I heard them mumbling to each other.

"Sister, I send you out to get one and you bring three..and a half. Such a clever girl." I recognized Alec praising Jane.

"She's alright, isn't she?" I heard Bella whisper to Edward. She sounded absolutely heartbroken.

"Yes, she's conscious again. She can hear us." He reassured her. I suddenly wondered how bad the damage was. "Bad." He answered simply as the sound of heavy iron doors opening hit my ears.

"What a happy surprise! Bella is alive after all!" Aro's deliriously happy voice laughed as we all entered the room, well, I was still being dragged by whoever had me by my feet. "Isn't that wonderful. I love a happy ending. They  are so rare." He sighed. "However, I thought I made myself quite clear that our guest were not to be injured."

"She was using her gift to try to deceive us, Master Aro. I was not willing to risk her escape." Jane explained herself.

"The Cullen Twins are very dear to me, Jane. Carlisle and Grace will not be happy that my coven has injured them so." Aro stressed to her. "Demetri, replace her head." He ordered.

Pain gripped me then, and I slipped unconscious again.

"Hahaha! Remarkable!" Aro's laughter shocked me awake, and I blinked rapidly as my sight returned to me.

Edward was on the floor, looking like he had just suffered greatly from Janes gift, while Alice hovered over him trying to get him to snap out of it. Bella's wide brown eyes made contact with mine as Aro dropped her hand. She looked relieved to see me awake again.

"She confounds us all! What a gift you must have lurking inside you to be so resistant to our talents, Isabella." Aro laughed, and I sighed in relief that he hadn't seen anything about Elizabeth.

"Aro." I gasped, stopping him from reaching out towards Bella again. I felt like I was choking from the large amount of venom running down my throat. "I'd like to be let go." I frowned at him.

"Ah! Sweet Grace, do forgive my associates, I would never mean you any harm." He apologized, quickly coming over to take me from Demetri's hold.

He held me up in a way that made me think we were about to dance, which unsurprisingly, he did waltz us over to the steps to the thrones as he asked "So what do we do with young Isabella now?"

"You already know what you're going to do, Aro." Marcus sighed, and I turned my head carefully to look at him.

He looked worst than the last time I had visited him a decade or so ago, and my heart hurt for my friend. I knew how unhappy he was here, but he was forced to remain from Corin's influence on him, and so there was nothing I could do. I could hope, however, that he would continue to stand up for me and my family. He sent me a strategic nod of his head, and I relaxed slightly knowing I had him to rely on.

"She knows too much. She's a liability." Cauis spoke quickly, the same antagonizing nasal tone I always hated hearing.

"Her father, my mate, is still human and in a position of high authority. Neither he nor Bella have spoken a word of our differences to the humans of Forks." I spoke, sounding horse but firm.

"That's true..." Aro nodded, petting my hair as if I were a sick child.

"You said yourself Aro that there are no intentions to change Isabella in Edwards mind. Our dismissal of Charles involvement with Grace can not be considered a factor here. Isabella is young and untrustworthy." Cauis added quickly, sending me a sneer.

"Felix." Aro sighed deeply, actually having the nerve to fake looking hurt by his decision.

"No!" I cried out, trying to get out of Aro's hold as Felix stalked towards my daughter.

Suddenly, Edward sprang up from the floor and flipped Bella over his shoulder right as Felix reached them. Felix grabbed Edward shoulders, and they began to throw each other back and forth. Demetri moved to help Felix, which prompted Alice to leap at him. She got tripped up however, and he ended up catching her in a tight chokehold. I tried to help, but Aro held me tight, and I was so weak that I couldn't push him away from me. Aro danced us back a few steps as Felix smashed Edward through the granite steps to the thrones, and I clenched my teeth in anger as Felix presented Edwards neck to Aro.

"Aro, please, this is unnecessary. Carlisle and I-"

"Have an unruly ward that unfortunately must learn from his mistakes." Aro sighed, putting his head against mine and I resisted the urge to bash my head against his. Having just been partially decapitated, I knew my head would break off before his did.

"No! No!" Bella screamed out as Felix applied pressure to Edwards neck. "Please! Please kill me! Not him!" She begged, in hysterics as she pulled at her hair.

"How extraordinary." Aro motioned for Felix to stop, and I sighed in relief. "You would give up your life for someone like us. A soulless monster." He puzzled.

"You don't know a thing about anyone's soul." Bella quipped back at him. "Grace has the most amazing soul, and I think I know my mother better than you do." She stated firmly. "So, if she has such a soul, then I have to think you all have some resemblance of one...however dark it may be."

I was so happy to hear such kind words, but I was furious about her awful timing.

"This is a sadness. I quite enjoy young Isabella's wit." Aro chuckled to himself. "If only you had intention to give her immortality." He frowned down at Edward.

"Wait!" Alice called out. "Bella will be one of us. I've seen it." She disclosed. "I'll change her myself." She promised him, holding her hand out to show Aro her vision.

He motioned for her to come forward, and she straightened out her clothes as she approached us and put her hand in his.

"Mesmerizing to see what you have seen before it has happened." Aro marveled at her vision, and I saw the thing that's always made Carlisle and I fearful to have Aro meet Alice, the look of wanting in his eyes. "Your gifts will make for an interesting immortal, Isabella. Go now, make your preparations." He dismissed us, kissing my cheek after he made sure I was steady on my feet.

I quickly rushed forward to get Bella into my arms, knowing Alice and Edward were close behind me as they both came to brace Bella and I.

"Let us be done with this, they'll be arriving soon." Marcus urged Aro. "Thank you for your visit." He smiled as much as he could, sending me a pointed look and I nodded in thanks.

"I'll advise you to follow through with your promises soon. We do not offer second chances." Cauis warned us as the guard opened the doors for us.

"Here, take this." Aro offered Edward a dark cloak of a guard member. "You're quite conspicuous like that." He frowned, and Edward slung the cloak over his shoulders. "Ah, it suits you." He sighed wistfully.

I was just thinking the exact opposite.

"Goodbye, young friends!" Aro called out as we followed Demetri out of the room.

"Nice fishing, Heidi." Demetri praised her as she led a group of tourist past us, headed in the direction of the thrown room.

I pulled Bella tighter into my arms and Edward stepped forward to hold her other side as she began to realize what was going to happen to the group.

"They do look rather juicy don't they?" Heidi laughed out from down the hall.

"Save some for me!" Demetri called back, sending a hungry look over his shoulder at Bella which caused both Edward and I to growl in warning at him.

The first scream of realization rang out then, and Bella tensed up violently. Alice quickly snaked her hand up around Bella's mouth to keep her from saying anything that could put us back in the throne room.

"I'm so sorry, Bella." I cooed to her, hoping I could get us all through this without any lasting trauma.