The Bonds Between Us • E.Cullen x Fem oc x B. Swan

Chapter 85

Bella sat stiffly in the passenger seat of the yellow porche that Alice has seemed to acquire.

"I'm guessing you didn't rent this car?" Bella asked as she glanced at the vampire, one hand gripping into the seatbelt, while the other was outstretched grasping onto the dash as the car dipped around other vehicles and farm machinery on the Italian roads.

"I figured you wouldn't be opposed to grand theft auto." "Not today." Bella spoke, shaking her head.

Alice's hands seems to tighten on the steering wheel as her eyes unfocused. "Alice? What do you see?" Bella asked the vampire. Blinking, Alice answered. "They refused him. Aro seemed concerned, intrigued even. I'm sure it is the pockets of empty space."

"Empty space? Lia?" Bella asked and Alice nodded. "If Edward had a hard time reading her mind, and I couldn't see her future, Aro wouldn't be able to see her in any of our pasts. I don't see her at all. It's as if she herself is invisible, yet the things that belong to her are still there, in the foreground. That's how I know she's there. Aro doesn't know that."

"Are you sure? I mean, there is so much that you don't know." Bella said. Alice glanced over to Bella briefly, wanting an explanation, yet knowing they didn't have time. "I know this much, if I didn't see Aro ask Edward about her, he doesn't know about her. Aro would want to know every single detail about someone like Cordelia."

"So? What does that mean? That they refused him?" "It means he's gonna make a scene. Show himself to the humans." "No! When?" Bella asked as she grabbed at her hair in nervousness. "He's gonna wait until noon, when the sun is at its highest." Glancing at the sun, Alice flinched, and Bella knew what it meant as a chill ran down her spine, her stomach churning.

Running her hand through her hair, she swallowed thickly, placing her hand back on the dash as the car shifted again as Alice's speed increased. "Alice, you've gotta go faster."

"Glancing to the left, Alice's golden eyes seemed to lock onto something in the distance. "There's Voltora." She told Bella as the human's brown eyes caught the silhouette of a town in the distance.

Making their way into the town, Bella immediately felt a strange sensation of panic wash over her. The streets were empty, something that she had heard and read was hardly ever the case. Nevertheless Alice sped through the narrow streets until they funneled into the main streets.

As they got closer, the citizens were dressed in red cloaks. Alice's hand seemed to be permanently on the horn as the people of Voltora didn't care to move, or couldn't as the days festivities were in full swing.

"Why are they all in red?" Bella asked as she looked around. "Saint Marcus Day Festival. They are commemorating the expulsion of vampires from the city. It's the perfect setting. The Voltori will never let him get far after he reveals himself." Alice told her the facts, trying to convince herself that they were going to save Edward. "We have five minutes!" Bella stated anxiously as she wrung her hands together, wishing Cori was here with her. She would know what to say, and how to calm Bella down at a time like this.

"I know, Bella. Just breathe." Alice told her, and the brunette released a harsh breath.

Running upon a blockade, Alice was forced to stop. Bella forced the door open, practically jumping  out before bending down, calling out Alice's name.

"Bella, you're the only one he cannot see coming. If I go, he'll read my thoughts, he'll think I'm lying, he'll rush into it." Alice told her. "Where do I go?" Bella asked. "He'll be under the clock tower. Go!" Alice yelled as the police men knocked on her window.

Bella took off, scrambling past load of people. There were masses of just red cloaks everywhere, everywhere she looked was red. Bella pushed and shoved as she pushed herself to go faster, ignoring the grunts and complaints of the people she pushed aside.

The wall of people seemed to give away, and it opened into a parade of sorts that was jumbled around the square of Voltura. Across the way, straight across Bella's eyes connected with the bell tower just as it struck noon.

Its bells began to chime, the door at the bottom creaked open. Bella had began moving again, not even realizing her feet were touching the cobblestone street. Finding her self stuck, with no way around the large fountain, she made the quick decision to go through it, not caring about her already beat up sneakers.

Edward seemed to emerge from the doorway faster than she could imagine and it both took her breath away, yet terrified her at the same time.

Stripping himself of his shirt, it fell to the ground almost delicately as he took a single step into the light. He could feel the warmth of the sun on his skin, a warmth he hadn't felt in months, one that sealed his fate and seemed to make his skin gleam in satisfaction that he would soon join his mates in the afterlife.

"Edward, DON'T!" Bella screamed as she jumped onto him, draping her body over his shimmering one, making him stagger back into the shadows. He wrapped his arms around her, yet hadn't realized this was real. Taking in Bella's scent, his eyes still closed, Edward released a breath. "Heaven." He mumbled softly.

"You have to move." Bella told him. "Open your eyes. Look at me. I'm alive." Bella told him as she gripped onto Edward for dear life. His darkened eyes opened to see Bella in front of him, the he glanced to either side, looking for the red head. "You have to move!" Bella told him again, louder this time and he obeyed, stepping back, past the doorway, dragging Bella with him. "Bella." He whispered as he still looked around.

Bella's head dropped knowing who he was looking for, wishing she was here too. "She's not here." Bella told him. "You're here." He said, trying to get his head wrapped around the lies he was fed. "I'm here." She nodded, leaning into him. "Cori?" He asked as he looked into her eyes. "She- she didn't come with us." Bella told him. If he heard her uptick in heart beat, he didn't mention it. "But she's-" Edward couldn't bring himself to even utter the words. "She's- she's okay." Bella told him, while also trying to make herself believe those simple words.

A/N: How do you like these flip flopping chapters? It's the only way I could get both perspectives, and yet still capture both story lines! I'm so excited for the next chapter of Voltora!