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The Newborn
By : belladonnacullen
Category: Twilight Series > Het
Views: 3452 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight or make any money from this story.
Chapter List
- 8
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The wind was knocked out of me. My breath left my body forcibly, and I fell into a chair. There was crackling silence on both ends of the telephone line. I managed to recover enough to speak after three minutes.
"Esme."
"Yes." Her voice was desperate.
"What happened?"
"He didn't return home last Thursday."
"It's been six days!" I wasn't sure if I had closed my eyes or the world went black. I let the telephone receiver drop to the floor.
"Tanya?" I could hear Esme's tinny voice from the floor. My breaths were coming quickly. I realized that my eyes were closed and made an effort to open them and pick up the phone.
"Tanya?"
I tried again. "What happened?"
"That first night he didn't come back we thought maybe he was caught by the light of day. But the next morning he still hadn't returned. The third night Carlisle and I tracked his scent to Harlem, but we couldn't find him and we didn't want to ask humans if they had seen him. We didn't want to bring attention his way." Esme stopped short.
I knew there was more. I could hear her breathing at the other end of the line. When she continued her voice was high-pitched and quavering. "There were deaths, Tanya, murders. Edward's scent was there. Why would he be there?"
"No. I still want him, Tanya. You're wrong."
"I don't know."
"Carlisle wasn't sure that we should continue to look for him. He said that Edward was a man, and that he'd made his choice. And I know he's an adult, but I was afraid, Tanya. I still am. Edward was so unhappy, like somehow he'd lost sight of everything inside himself. I convinced Carlisle to come out with me again, but we always seemed to be one step behind him. Then the next night his scent was gone."
"Last night we were about to return home when we finally picked up his trail. It led us to the piers downtown, pier twenty-three. But his scent disappeared at the water's edge. I stayed rooted to the spot while Carlisle went to inquire about the ships that moored there. The last ship was a steamer bound for Southampton. It left eight hours before we arrived."
"Carlisle held me back from jumping. I struggled against him until we could see dawn's light on the horizon. I felt trapped. I didn't want to leave Edward's scent. Carlisle had to support me the whole way home."
"Tanya, he's really gone." Esme's voice went dead after she finished the story.
There was nothing left to say. I saw grayness creeping in from the periphery of my vision. There was buzzing in my ears and I noticed a strange sensation like I was separate from my body. I watched myself sitting in the chair. I looked so calm. But I didn't know how much longer I would be able to sit like that.
"Thank you for telling me, Esme." I managed, with considerable difficulty, to sound polite.
"Can I call you tomorrow?" But I didn't give her a chance to answer. I dropped the receiver and ran. I had one wildly irrational thought and I focused on it, like it was an irrefutable truth. I convinced myself that it wasn't as bad as Esme made it sound. I pushed myself, my feet hardly hit the ground and I didn't bother taking the inconspicuous routes. Instead I ran over roadways, through trading outposts, and past the encampments of prospectors. Soon I was in the mountains, one peak looming higher than all the rest.
The air grew colder and thinner as I climbed, and I noticed a paper thin sheen of ice covering my body before I was half way to the summit. When I reached the top of the mountain, I was a thing of snow and ice, my hair wild and frozen to my scalp and my face. Desperately, I turned in circles, forcing my eyes to the horizon line around me. I thought that if I were high enough I would be able to see Edward. I was certain that this spot would give me what I needed. I thought that somehow Edward would have made sure of this. But as my overly acute eyes probed through the swirling grayness of the Denali winter, there was no hint of vampire as far as I could see. Then I was alone.
*
My world collapsed in on itself. It was as if someone had slammed shut a book of pop- up pictures. My beautiful three-dimensional world was suddenly flat and gray. I returned home slowly. I reasoned that I would find Edward myself. But my family wouldn't have it. They said they needed me and that I'd been gone too long already.
"Tanya, what would you do? He doesn't want to be found. If he wants you, he'll come here," Irina reasoned.
That truth hurt almost as much as the news of his absence. For the first time in my long vampire existence, I took to my bed. My sisters brought me new clothing and tried to entice me with news of human males and interesting game.
Carmen and Eleazar whispered about taking me abroad. I needed to be by the telephone. I seldom hunted farther than an hour or two from home. I counted days. I broke Edward's absence down into hours, minutes, and seconds. Then I added time back together again, into months and seasons. I spoke to Esme as often as we could bear it. Fourteen days:
Carlisle sent word to Alistair and Siobhan, old acquaintances of his, to please let him know if they caught word of a young vampire from America. Esme and Carlisle were hopeful that they would hear news soon. Thirty-three days:
Esme hovered about the post office, waiting breathlessly. Her feet would take her there of their own accord. She would walk out to the eastern-most point of the small barrier island and look as hard as she could, always half expecting to see Edward swimming back to them. She never did.
Fifty-nine days: Esme spent her time on the beach, wandering and praying. She wasn't a God-fearing vampire, but needed the support of something bigger than herself to get through the hours of daylight. Carlisle took a leave of absence from work so that he could stay with her through the night.
Seventy-eight days: Esme and Carlisle returned to their home in Bronxville. They couldn't risk exposure at the beach house in the spring. Esme kept her eyes closed and her head down for the entire journey.
Three hundred sixty-five days: Esme wouldn't let them move from the house in Bronxville, even though they were pushing the limits of safety with their long residence. Carlisle coxed her with other possibilities, places she had always wanted to visit, but she refused. They stayed inside as much as possible to avoid suspicion.
Four hundred twenty days: I could no longer get a hold of Esme on the telephone. When I would call it would either ring, unanswered, or Carlisle would pick up. He told me he was glad to have someone to confide in. Esme was deteriorating.
Five hundred days: Carlisle transferred to a small hospital in a neighboring village so that he could be closer to Esme. He worked fewer shifts at night and spent his days nursing Esme, holding her, and coaxing her to hunt.
Her eyes turned black, the circles under them were always deep purple and bruised. Neighbors whispered that she was ill.
One thousand seventy nine days: A teenager died in the emergency room on Carlisle's shift. He considered changing the boy. He had the fleeting idea that this would turn everything around for the family. They could start over. But then he realized they would have to move.
Suddenly he knew that it wasn't just Esme that couldn't move on, it was him as well. Then Edward's loss hit him full on again, like it did that first day at the dock when he knew his boy was gone.
He left his shift early, surprising everyone at the hospital by claiming that he was ill. He wandered the streets all night and never told Esme. He didn't want to hurt her more. After this phone call I realized that we were all stuck.
Vampires can't change their ways, they can't change whom they love, and they can't break the ties that bind. The only way we could get through this would be to find Edward. I knew the one vampire that could do it. I got myself up out of the bed and marched down to the sitting room to inform my family that I was going to Italy, to Volterra.
*
Eleazar jumped from his seat at the news.
"What do you mean to do, Tanya?"
"Demetri can find him. Demetri can find anyone. I've known him for many years. He would do this for me, I am sure."
"Tanya, if you go to the council we would be in their debt. You would make our families more vulnerable than they already are. And God help Edward if the Volturi finds him. Do you think they would just let him go?" Eleazar's eyes were wide and wild.
"Then we'll ask another tracker. We've met many over the years. I've heard mention of one named James."
He shook his head emphatically. "Trackers owe allegiance to no one except the hunt. They can't be trusted."
"But Esme is past the point of desperation. Surely she'll do something to bring attention to her and Carlisle."
"It's Esme you're worried for, sister?"
"I don't know why you don't want Edward found, Eleazar. I thought you always liked the boy. I don't need your approval. I am the head of this family." I turned to call Esme. This had gone on long enough. We would find him. Eleazar was across the room and grabbed hold of my arm.
"No Volturi. No trackers. I will go."
*
Carmen and I set out for our journey across the great northern tundra the day after I spoke with Tanya. There was no reason to wait. There were eight of us animal-feeding vampires in the world, living by our principles and our wits. Both of our clans were in disarray, and one of us was missing. Carlisle and Esme had stayed in the same place for far too long.
Nothing could convince Esme to move, and I think she would welcome discovery and death before she put any more space between herself and the boy.
Our clan had been without a head for years while Tanya consorted with the boy in New York. Every clan needs a leader. Vampires are far too contentious to live cooperatively. Irina and Kate bickered over men and Carmen and I fell into isolation within our own household. We were near striking out on our own when Tanya returned.
But a month had scarcely elapsed when news came that the boy had left. After that it was worse for us than when Tanya was physically gone. For not only were we left to oversee ourselves, but we were also put upon to take care of Tanya and endure her moods. Carmen and I had many discussions about whether or not to leave during this time. But even if we saved ourselves, I was concerned about the weakened state of our allies. I wasn't sure that Carmen and I were strong enough to exist as the only two of our kind.
I had worked with the Volturi for over one hundred years, searching out those among us with rare powers. Aro, the head of the Volturi, was a collector of the unique and powerful among us. He could see the thoughts of others, but Edward's powers were far superior to his. In fact, they were beyond anything I had encountered before, and I had encountered much in my time on this earth.
I knew what lengths Aro would go to in order to keep Edward for himself. The only alternative I saw was that he might be jealous enough to find reason to end the boy's life. I knew of Aro's disdain for Carlisle and his lifestyle. I also knew of his contempt for my three sisters, or the cattle-consorts, as he would call them. (No matter that many of the Volturi had engaged in similar practices from time to time.) They would welcome knowledge of our handicap and work to use it to their advantage.
When Tanya came to me, eyes bright with hope about her plan to consult with Demetri, I was appalled. I'm certain Demetri could find the boy, but nothing good would come of it. Tanya didn't seem convinced, and I was worried beyond measure that she would plant ideas into Esme's fragile mind.
The women were desperate. These bonds of love worried me. All vampires felt this for their mates, but this other familial bond was very strong within our two clans. I was worried that maybe we had impaired ourselves with this love, with this lifestyle. If the departure of one young vampire could bring down two families, how would we ever survive?
So I proposed leaving to search of our young friend. I had worked with him on his powers for a month. I knew the feel of his brain as it probed the air around him. I knew his scent, and I had tracked talented vampires for years. I was the one among us that was best suited for this mission.
Tanya threw herself at me after I made my offer, and held me for far longer than I was comfortable with.
"Tanya, I must go and inform Carmen. We'll leave at once."
*
My heart was heavy as we traveled eastward over the ice. It had taken Carmen and I many years to find our new clan. With each step I worried that I was unraveling that journey, making it in reverse, over the ice, over the ocean, and back to my native land.
I arranged for transport on a ship that bore us to the British Isles, for that was our only lead. I padded the pockets of crewmembers to allow for the transport of livestock in the hold. It would be the only way to sanely travel across the sea while avoiding the blood of humans.
But on our arrival there was no sign, scent or sense of the boy. Questions among others of our kind elicited curiosity at the appearance of our eyes, but no information about Edward.
I was left with my intuition alone, something I had followed faithfully when I worked for the Volturi. Instinct took us across the English Channel, away from the ocean and into the Black Forest.
This was a contentious period in Europe's history. Nations had sprung up overnight. They were formed from afar by councils and treaties, but the humans within these borders were age-old enemies. Leaders were appointed, then overthrown by armies, and then voted out by popular revolts. Humans were on the move as the borders of their homelands shifted for the first time in hundreds of years. Discontent was rising. An old order was falling.
This was the perfect environment for a vampire and his misdeeds to go unnoticed. I felt the pull of our old land, where the oldest among us still called home. I didn't know what brought me here, whether it was Tanya herself, or the language she and Edward spoke to one another, or just something in my vampire DNA.
But each night I pulled Carmen farther into the land of our forefathers, where our existence was still considered more fact than legend by many of the human inhabitants. And it was here, at the base of the Carpathian Mountains, in the small hamlet of Byztherczebana that I first felt the tremor in the air that I recognized as Edward. His scent was faint, but it hung in a narrow ally on the edge of town.
Carmen and I walked in the shadows, peering down pathways, trying to identify the spot where it was strongest. We walked in the shadow of a rundown boarding house and surprised thickset peasant woman as she returned with a bucket of water.
Carmen and I kept still and trained our eyes on the ground in hopes that she would move on without alarm.
"Strigoi!" she shouted as she ran for the shelter of the house. "Strigoi, strigoi!" "Come quick, bring garlic! Strigoi!" Doors along the ally began to open and Carmen and I ran into the foothills.
Humans with garlic meant nothing to us, but we weren't here to create a commotion. We didn't want to draw the attention of the Volturi. We took to the mountains, heading west into the highlands, following Edward's smell the best we could. His scent lingered in small towns nestled among the foggy, moss-covered crags, and circled medieval castles.
Carmen and I feasted on bear, lynx and wild boar to build our strength and aid in our pursuit. Finally, Edward's trail turned abruptly southward along the Tisza River, and we made our way into the northern hills of Magyarorszag, in the shadow of the blue-hued Mount Kekes.
We waited until nightfall to enter the city of Miskolc. It was the largest human settlement that we had encountered in our time in the old country. This piece of land was prized for its natural resources, and in the past ten years it had traded hands three times. Its population had tripled, its factories belched smoke, its inhabitants were growing poorer instead of richer.
I could feel Edward in the air around us. We took a room at a small rough inn, and I made Carmen wait behind. We were closer to Edward than we had been during our entire trek, and it was dangerous to pursue a vampire, no matter former friend or ally.
I walked through the main square, and was then drawn to the south. There, low limestone caves had been turned to wine cellars and drinking rooms. Men black with coal from the mines mixed with street musicians, merchants and the odd woman of the night.
The road wound along the caverns and around a bend, where the people and the lights didn't follow. I saw a human male streak past me, holding his pants up with his hand. My body shuddered; I was close. Now that there was no one to watch me I moved with vampire speed.
Around the backside of the rock wall, a door was hanging open. Several young girls peeked out through the doorway. They were dressed in women's petticoats, their lips and cheeks were rouged and their eyebrows were blackened with coal. They sported tattered ribbons in their stringy hair. When they caught sight of me, they jumped and scattered and cowered in the corners. I smelled the blood before I reached the doorway.
The cave was low, long and narrow, with cells carved into the soft rock on either side. Along the back wall two men lay on the floor in a heap. But there was no blood; their necks had simply been broken. Surely I smelled blood?
That's when I noticed a very soft human noise. It was the sniffle of a human child covering his mouth. It was something I hadn't heard in many years. I followed this sound around an outcropping of rock and found a narrow opening. Inside was a very small boy curled in the corner, wearing a dress. He had shallow cuts on his arms, and along one cheek. He didn't bother to look up as I entered, but shivered and shook in his spot.
The man was on the ground, his pants around his knees, a knife in his hand, and a bloody wound on his neck. But his neck hadn't been bled dry. Instead, the blood pooled underneath him and clung in clots to the hair on his head. High in the wall was an iron grate that had been punched out.
There were only a few creatures on this earth that would have been able to do that. One was vampire. I pulled myself through the grating; Edward's scent was strong. I followed his trail using my fastest human walk and grew nervous as I began to recognize his target. He was going straight for the boarding house I left Carmen at. I picked up my pace and made it there in minutes. I threw open the front door and collided with the proprietor as I entered.
"Sir!" He looked flustered and frightened.
"My apologies," I spat with haste as I pushed the man out of my way.
"But sir, I have a message for you." I spun around.
"A young ... gentleman left this for you." He held out a shaky hand holding a rough scrap of paper. I retrieved it quicker than I should have. The man jumped.
I am alive. I am moving on. Now please leave.
*
Carmen and I arrived at the Cullen's house in Bronxville almost a year to the day after we'd first set out on our journey. It hurt me to see them; both were shadows of their former selves.
They strained to smile at us and make us feel welcome, and then clung to each other when we told them of our journey. I left out much of my experience in Miskolc, but told Carlisle in confidence after Esme had left with Carmen. Carmen asked if we could stay on for a time in hopes that she could bring some solace to Esme.
Carmen coaxed her out of the house for long walks and shopping trips. They would spend long hours reading each other poetry, or playing checkers, one of Esme's favorites. Then one day as Carlisle and I returned home from the hunt we stopped in our tracks on the doorstep.
Inside we could hear Esme laughing. Carlisle let his head fall forward and closed his eyes. When he turned to look at me he was smiling. The next night Carmen and I were packing to leave when I felt a sudden change in the air. It didn't make any sense, but the feeling grew stronger. Carmen's head snapped in my direction. She knew when I could sense something.
"What is it, love?" "
I don't know. It feels like... It must be witchcraft of some kind. Carlisle and Esme should be informed."
But even as I rushed to the landing, the vibrations grew stronger. I ran to the stairs. Carlisle was on the third floor, and Esme was on the first.
"Carlisle, Esme!" I called with urgency. The air was pulsing around me. This was stronger than I'd felt in all of Europe. They each were at the stairs.
"Eleazar, what is it?" Carlisle asked.
"Someone's coming," I started to say. But I was too late.
There was a quick knock at the door. I heard Esme gasp. Carlisle was at her side. Then a cold gust of winter air blew through the door jam and into the house.
"Aah!" Esme clutched Carlisle as he threw open the door. Edward stood on doorstep, his head down, with his hands in his tattered pockets.
Esme charged at him, hugging him to her, and burying her head in his chest. We could all hear Edward suck in a chest full of air with her touch.
It sounded almost like a hiss. His body tensed and he clenched his jaw. Carlisle took a few deep breaths before walking over to the pair. He hesitated before putting out his hand to touch Edward's arm.
But after that touch he could no longer remain aloof. He pulled the boy and Esme into his arms, ignoring Edward's rigid posture. Eventually, Edward was able to relax a bit.
"Edward." Esme coaxed.
He hesitantly lifted his head to reveal dusky orange eyes. He tried to look away, but Esme caught his chin in her hand and forced him to look at her.
"I tried to stay away until they changed back, but I couldn't keep myself from you any longer."
"My boy." The utterance was breathed more than spoken, and I could feel Carlisle's accumulated tension released like a puff of smoke into the night air.
Carlisle pulled Edward to him, holding him tightly in his arms.
"You could always come to us."
"Carlisle, I was wrong. I was so wrong." Edward pulled himself free. "Would you take me back?"
"We never let you go, my boy."
"Do you still want me?"
Esme took him by the hand and gently pulled him toward the doorway. "Please, come in."
From behind me, I heard Carmen run down the stairs. Edward flinched and his head snapped up, and he took a step away from the house. I caught Carmen midway down the first flight of stairs and held her to me. We stayed vampire still.
Esme gently led Edward into the sitting room. She took both of his hands in hers and pulled him down to the divan. Edward sat awkwardly and he was unable to make eye contact with her. But Esme couldn't take her eyes off of him.
Carlisle walked to the far end of the room and clutched the windowsill. I could tell that he was trying to gather himself together.
"Please forgive me." Edward whispered.
Esme began taking short, sharp breaths and looked for all the world like she was crying. She placed her hand gently behind Edward's head, and bent her head so that she could look into his orange eyes.
Edward seemed to melt with the warmth of her gaze. His posture softened and in one fluid motion he laid his head on her lap, wrapped his arms around her waist, and hid his face. He drew his knees up to his chest. Esme ran her hand through his hair and hummed something soft and sweet that I couldn't place.
I tugged Carmen by the arm and we retired upstairs.
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The Newborn	By : belladonnacullen Category: Twilight Series > Het Views: 3452 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight or make any money from this story.

The Newborn