this town * cullen

chapter ten

            

The phone in my pocket vibrated relentlessly, but I couldn't take the chance of looking away from the road. My headlights were the only thing keeping me from panic at the night around me, but I didn't want to stop.

Surely, this could have gone better. Locking myself in my room would have been a better option, but here I sat in the night and the lonely road ahead of me. I never enjoyed driving, but I didn't hate it. Just, right now, I wasn't sure what I felt. I needed this, though, and so I kept going.

I wasn't sure how long I had been driving, but when my phone stopped ringing I hardly noticed it. The insistent buzzing had become background, and I knew I should have felt upset whoever it was had given up; but I couldn't find it in myself to care.

I'm not even angry. I just don't want to hear it anymore. I thought to myself, unsure of my actions. I was angry, maybe, but I mostly felt done. Farley had cut the last string, and I didn't want to hear or see her. She knew Renesmee meant something to me, so she found her way to finally break me.

Realizing I couldn't drive forever I stopped at a gas station. The area was lit, so I felt somewhat safe as I pulled up next to the pump to get gas. Though, tiredness was starting to take effect, so I took a deep breath and closed my eyes for half a second. Less than that, even.

In that time, though, cold hands had me.

"Don't worry, I'm not here to kill you." His voice was smooth and unfamiliar. His cold arms were wrapped around me, one hand across my chest and the other across my mouth. My heart was a speeding train, and I hopped it wouldn't stop at a station.

Faster than I could process we were out of my car and into the cold night, the light disappearing behind us as wind pressed across my cheeks. The chill went through the jacket I wore, a small shiver going through me as I failed to close my eyes.

He had somehow gotten me bridal style in the few moments he took to get me. My head cringed against his chest, the wind slicing through my ears in a loud roar as if I had the window open in a moving car. I closed my eyes, the wind meeting my face and the loud roaring was the only indication we were even moving. His run was smooth, like flying instead of running. I had seen a vampire run before, but to be in the arms of one running was something else entirely.

The run seemed to last an eternity in these strange arms, and I wished for Renesmee. My fear of the dark was in full throttle, panic setting in my throat. I kept my eyes closed, my own darkness better than the one that met me on the outside. My glasses pressed uncomfortably against my skull, but this seemed less important in the whole of my situation. Still, this let me know I could see without the cloud of blurriness that came without my glasses. Surely focusing on the positive would get me through this.

When we stopped running, I continued to keep my eyes closed, afraid I would be met with darkness. My own darkness was much more comforting than when I was looking out into the unknown. I didn't open them until I was set down on something soft.

"Closing your eyes like a child won't make it go away," he laughed as I opened them, luckily being met with light. I looked straight at him, and I couldn't control what was happening with my face. I only memorized his features.

Pale, smooth skin, and the red eyes of someone I should fear. I remembered the conversation I had not too long ago; he drank human blood, and I was human. His hair was dark, black, and mussed everywhere. His mouth was set in a permanent smirk, making me feel as if he knew something I didn't. Well, he did know plenty I didn't, but that was beside the point.

"Those Cullens are quite careless," he sighed as if bored. "For people who have the ability to challenge the Volturi, you'd expect more care in their actions." His tone was disapproving. The Volturi was still a new concept to me, just the ruling family of vampires. No one broke the rules unless they wanted to die. I wasn't sure if I wanted to let him know I knew or not, so I kept quiet. What kind of game was he playing?