Sixteen

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Chapter Sixteen

~ Bella’s Point of View ~

Burning.

It was intense as anything I could ever remember being told about the change and yet I couldn’t find it in myself to cry out.  I deserved this punishment of fire and brimstone. 

What had I done?
I knew exactly what I had done, and as much as I might of wished it, I couldn’t take it back now.  The damage was already done and from the moment Caius’s venom hit my bloodstream, I just knew.  I could feel it burning its way through my system.  His love for me was so… strong.  It was all consuming. 

What had I done? 

Would have ever forgive me this slight I committed against him?  Would I have done things differently had I known what I meant to him?  I honestly didn’t know.  I wanted to think I would, that I would never hurt him in such a way.  But I didn’t know.

I guess I’m not quiet as perceptive as everyone gave me credit for. 

It was always there.  All the information I needed.  It was there, right below the service of lust and the desire to be wanted but I never took the time to really look at the facts.  I was too caught up in my own shit.  My Edward shit. 

God, I hated that name. 

It invoked a fury in me every time it crossed through my mind like a snapshot.  It was like a firecracker in the dark.  A quick pop and then he was gone.  And then it would be there again. 

I didn’t scream.  I didn’t deserve to scream.  Through the pain I would repent.  Repent for the sins of the mortal flesh. 

And repent, I did. 

For one hundred and sixty-eight hours.

Seven hundred and five thousand six hundred heartbeats, I repented. 

Then along with my heartbeat… it stopped. 

My senses became like a live wire now that the pain was gone.  I could smell, hear, taste and feel everything.  Somehow I knew that Caius had finally come back to me, even in his anger and was sitting at my side.  His body radiated concern and agitation. 

It was also made aware to me that Marcus and Aro resided in this room and had been for days on end, their sent was fresh and stale all at the same time.  So I guessed I wasn’t alone as I thought throughout the horrible burn.

Then I noticed them.  I wished I could tell myself that they smelled terrible, like you would imagine all villains would smell like.  Evil and black.  But they didn’t, and they weren’t.  Not really. 

The Cullens were far from the top of the list of my most favorite beings, in fact as of right now they ranked just a little more than Edward.  That unfortunately, was also a lie. 

I didn’t hate them, not all of them… really, not any of them.  But their presence here bothered me.  It was cruel reminder of all that I had lost and more so, of what I had done myself.  Them being here was like an angry red wound over my heart that despite my new indestructible body, wouldn’t heal. 

It pissed me off. 

Exactly thirty seconds had passed since my heart had thudded to a stop for the last time and my revelations concerning myself, my love and the Cullen family. 

And then I opened my eyes.

“I thought I told you to leave!” 

~

~ Caius’ Point of View ~

She is as magnificent a creature as I had ever seen. 

Dark locks framing a equally beautiful and terrifying face.  She was a demon in a sirens shell and I was giddy with the thought of all she would accomplish here just on her ability to terrify alone.

She was a scorned woman personified.

Deadly.

Entrancing.

Mine.

I’ll admit I was just as terrified as my brethren when my beloved did not rouse from her sleeping death after the allotted seventy-two hours, though, I shouldn’t have been surprised.  My girl was a befuddlement all her own.  Even as a human she vexed me.  Now, I was entirely sure that she would do it all the more so. 

But what would come to pass now that she had woken… Did she remember me at all?  Would she spurn me for leaving her to torment whist I grappled with my own temper?

Was I a fool to have left her?

Bright red eyes scanned the room, lit with the burning betrayal I could nearly feel stinging through her veins.  A snarl passed her exceptional lips, flesh curling over the pointed fangs that left no doubts as to who had sired her. 

She was mine in every since of the word and a strange sort of pride swelled in my chest every time I looked upon the poisonous beauty of her face. 

“I thought I told you to leave,”  she hissed, the room flinching with anticipated shutters as we beheld her glorious wrath.  If ever before I doubted her perfection… this day would end them.

The small dark child of Carlisle stepped forward, not as brave as she was just moments before.  Fools, the lot of them.  “Bella,”  she stated in a quiet, placating voice as she took another hesitant step.  “We are here for you.” 

My beloved chuckled, a bell like sound for certain but it was neither uplifting nor sweet.  She was a reaper in this moment and I almost felt the need to feel sorry for the children of Carlisle Cullen…

This was no longer a woman they knew. 

She was my goddess of darkness now, and I revealed in the unleashing of her. 

“Ah,”  she hummed wistfully, her beautiful pale legs slipping for the cradle of our bed to make first contact with her new life.  “But what if I don’t want you here, Alice?”

“Bella, please do not be unkind, Alice was frightfully worried about you during your slumber.”  Carlisle, the fool, interjected on his daughters behalf. 

In honesty, I did not think it possible to ever understand this man.  Not on any level.  Perhaps it was because the man had never known betrayal.  Perhaps it was nothing more than a naiveté, that he could not understand such things.  Perhaps the man could not see beyond the ties of unconditional love. 

Or what he thought unconditional love to be.

The manner in which he speaks makes me ill to the core.  He stands there like a beacon of white light and purity and yet he makes excuses for his families treatment of my beloved. 

A fleeting thought of his head removed from his shoulders makes me grin.  A grin not unnoticed by the stunning creature at my side.  Her dark brow lift with question and I but smile at her and mouth ‘later’.

She beams at me, the smile genuine and so stunning and dripping with desire that I force myself to still and bask in its glory.  The guilt I feel burning through me at my own treatment of her will be paid for later.  She may cleave the granite flesh from my bones if she so desires, as long as she wears that smile. 

Desire laces through me as images flash through my mind of my dark princess, a blade of werewolf teeth in hand, supple skin and a rueful smirk. 

My goddess.

“Leave,”  the sound passes my lips without preamble, a snarl accompanies the sound, though it is not from the person I expected. 

Marcus, has a look of such rage on his usually bored face that I smile at him.  He hisses again, this time at Carlisle who has taken a step in our Lady’s direction. 

“Bow before royalty, fools of Cullen.”

Carlisle looks well and truly shocked by my brother’s outburst but bends by knee, the others following.  My Isabella giggles at the gesture.  It is far to sweet a sound to come for such a damned face and it sends another shiver of desire crashing through my body. 

“Leave,”  I tell them again, my eyes settling on the short dark haired one above all others.  It is her and her husband that demand most of my ire, though none are in my good graces… except the big one.  His wife as well. 

“Caius,”  My lovely calls, tugging gently at my hand.  I peer down into deep red irises, longing for a stolen moment alone that I may reaffirm my devotion of her.  “I want Emmett and Rosalie to stay, if they want to, that is.” 

My eyes narrow and fly to their faces… I cared not if they wished to stay.  I would chain them to our chamber walls for an eternity if it was her wish.  They smile and nod, hesitant but with happiness.  They wish to stay, but I could smell the worry on them.  They were frightened of me. 

“Of course,”  I rumbled, my free hand ghosting across the pale fruit of her cheeks and I cannot resist the urge to curl my clawed hand down the silky column of her neck.  “What ever you wish, beloved.” 

From the corner of the room, Marcus snorts and Bella growls.  “Shut up, brother, or shall I find something heavier to throw than a mere vase?” 

From the rooms in the distance, Sulpicia and Dora are practically howling with laughter.  I know that they cannot wait to great their new sister, and personally I would have much preferred their company than to which stands there gaping like dying amphibians. 

“Bella,” The little dark haired one called again, this time looking frightened but oddly determined for a vampire about to be exiled from Volterra.  “Please don’t send us away.  Jasper-”

At his name a snarl passes from various corners of the room.  She pauses, thinking herself through before speaking or perhaps she was checking for a vision before she continued.  “He wishes to apologize for… for well, everything.”

“Apologize?”  Marcus shouts in disbelief, his thundering voice quaking the very bowls of the castle. 

It was perchance unwise to assume anything at this stage of the game being played here amongst us, but it was hard to see this argument ending in anything but bloodshed.  Marcus was inexplicably drawn to my fiery queen, in ways I was still somewhat uncertain of.  Even so, he was fiercely protective and he was becoming frighteningly agitated with our unwelcome quests. 

Many of our great race knew very little about Marcus beyond the demise of his beloved Didyme and in her death, the demise of himself.  One thing that had been sorely forgotten over the many millennia that my dear brother had sequestered himself behind these very walls, was his vile temper.  Which I was fortuitously bequeathed to watch rise like the bird of fire from its very ashes. 

Waiting patiently was never one of my virtues so when the slapping of heels against stone tore my attention from the bickering family of vampires before me, I growled. 

“Oh hush, brother,”  Came the tinkling laugh of my sister as she all but pushed her way through the stunned Cullens and moved to embrace my beloved. 

“You are absolutely stunning,”  she whispered in a light, baiting tone.  “but then again, I told my brother upon meeting you that you would be.”  she laughed, turning and holding her hand out for Sulpicia who seemed a tad more hesitant to approach a newly mated, freshly woken newborn. 

“Come now, Picia… there’s no need to be shy.  Isabella will not harm you, will you Isabella?” 

Bella looked upon my sister as one would look on a madman but shook her head, confirming what we all already knew.  My goddess wished to hurt only those who had hurt her and Sulpicia was not on the chopping block as of yet. 

“Are you well, Isabella?”  Aro’s wife finally spoke as she gathered her courage and joined with the others of her station. 

“Thirty,”  my darling croaked, her body trembling with need and for a moment I had to remind myself that she was hungry and in no way ready for my passions. 

“Shall we take you to feed, Bella?”  Carlisle asked, foolishly opening his mouth once again.  And like other times before, Marcus and myself included snarled at him. 

But it was my sister who laughed.  “You silly people.  You really think my brother would subjugate his own Lady wife to that disgusting excuse for nourishment you feed yourselves?” 

Carlisle seemed shocked by the questing, as did his wife and daughters but the big one was fighting a chuckle and losing his grip fast. 

The little one gasped, holding a hand to her breast as if her heart might arrest at the very suggestion of my queen fulfilling herself with a habitual diet of human blood.  As I said, imprudent they all were in their behavior. 

“You don’t mean that!”  she nearly shrieked and I had to tramp down the urge to cover my ears while simultaneously removing her silly head.  “Bella would never take a human life.” 

The woman in question growled low, her fists tightening at her side as she fought control of her raging temper.  Another swell of pride swirled within my veins at the sight.  Any typical newborn would have already attacked just from the sheer volume of the wee ones voice, forget the threatening tone behind it. 

As my sister narrowed her eyes, I could see the insults forming on her tongue.  Though, before she could attempt to open her mouth, my dangerous little snake of a woman, struck. 

“I would rather take human life than end up deranged squirrel-sucking monsters like you.” 

Carlisle went to object to his families scolding but was stopped surprisingly by a flick of Aro’s hand.  Apparently he too wished to hear my beloved speak her peace at last. 

“You called me family…”  she scoffed, her gleaming crimson orbs rolling to the ceiling in a strange human custom I still found hard to grasp before they clinched into dangerous slits as she aimed her glare at each and every one of them.  “Where was my family while I suffered for months at Edward’s cruel words?  Where was my family when Charlie thought I was nuts and damn near had me committed?  Where were you when-”

Carlisle stepped forward again, this time with a look of heartbreak in his eyes.  “Bella we have apologized for our misgivings and you know in your heart how broken up we all were when we were forced-”

“Forced my ass!”  she bellowed and while my brothers and sisters all tittered together, I’ll admit I found it hard to bite back a chuck myself as my fierce little butterfly slapped a stone hand against the marble flesh of her ass to further prove her point. 

“You may have listened to Edward when he pleaded for you to go but no one forced your hand and at least you had each other!”   Her head dropped, a curtain of ebony waves shielding our eyes from her downcast face.  “I had no one.”

My sister seemingly fed up with this charade of pleasantries took my beloved by the hand and cooed gently into her ear.  “Come now sister, let us adjourn to my rooms where we dine in peace and get you dressed properly, you are a Queen now, are you not.”  she added sinister smirk. 

I knew what she was doing and looking upon the shocked faces of My Queens former family I’d say she did her job smashingly.  The sick mixture of horror and concern passed over each of their faces.  They were terrified. 

Good.

Bella raised her head, looking fondly on my sister before she nodded.  “Thank you, that sounds wonderful.” 

Dora beamed, pleased with herself and the fast growing affections between she and her new sister before she turned to me.  “Brother, will you be joining us?” 

“I will join you in a moment.”  I told her, caressing the top of girls hair before pressing a tender kiss to her forehead. 

As they strode from the room, arms linked together and whispering under their breath about silly things such as reconstructing a new suit for us in mind, I turned and looked upon the still shell shocked Olympic Coven. 

“Demetri, Felix,”  I call, knowing that will not enter these rooms without permission.  The trail in a moment later, looking slightly on edge for their own parts played in this game with the Cullen family.  “Please escort Carlisle and his children to a wing of the castle in which they will not be a bother to her Majesty, I will deal with them later.”