The Walkers (Twilight Fan Fiction)

Chapter Twenty Five

Chapter Twenty Five

The oil-stained concrete glowed in the moonlight, and for a second, it looked as though we were walking amongst the stars. It was an illusion, of course. In reality, I was being forced through the shipyard area of Jacksonville, Florida, to be used as bait for Shiloh. My stomach twisted with each step I took, and I held on to the hope that she wouldn’t come. If the future of the Walkers depended on me dying, then I would gladly step in. I would take the fall, and I would do it willingly.

I struggled to find my footing, and like so many times before, I stumbled forward. An icy hand reached out and steadied me, pulling me back roughly. I growled in response to the physical contact but ultimately kept my thoughts to myself. We had been walking for nearly ten minutes, and I had already come close to falling three times. It wasn’t entirely my fault. There wasn’t an adequate light source, and the ground was slick with what was probably oil. For once, my clumsiness was not my fault.

Not including Constantine and Tabitha, there were about ten Volturi guards. They were a force of nature and moved with pageantry, with a kind of deadly beauty. Their pace was slow but deliberate, with no hurry, no tension, no anxiety. It was the pace of the invincible. They came with one specific purpose: to destroy.

The six, self-appointed lords of the area shuffled close behind. Each of them had brought their own personal bodyguard, totaling their number to twelve. Compared to the Volturi with their flowing robes, the lords looked somewhat out of place. Dressed like your everyday bankers, lawyers, and businessmen, they glanced around the area nervously. They were an angry mob, whipped to a frenzy and slavering for justice, but there was fear there also. They had never challenged the Walkers in the past—not that I knew of, anyway—and it was clear that doing so now made them anxious. No. It’s more than that. Their sideways glances and continuous whispers told me that they were afraid.  

Constantine marched regally ahead of the pack, his cape billowing in the breeze that rolled off the ocean. I had no idea where he was taking us. After announcing his intentions, there had been no hint of a destination. He had merely led me out of the torture room and into the arms of the vampire that was currently holding me hostage. I glared up at him now, but he ignored me. They all ignored me. Why they felt I needed a guard at all was beyond me. Did they actually thing I could escape?

The smell of metal, oil, and rust filled my nose as we moved deeper into the yard, which made me cough and gag a little.  I gasped as the clouds cleared and cast the full moonlight on the area. On the right, a series of large, massive tankers, held to the pier by gigantic chains, hovered in the dark waters. Large storage bins lined the left side. They were multicolored and covered with different company names. Why had Constantine led us here? Was it because it was far from humanity, and the vampires could conduct their business in peace, or was it something else?

“Stop here,” he said firmly and motioned with his right hand. “Bring her up.”

I was half dragged, half carried up to the front, and when the guardsman brushed against the wound on my back, I squealed in pain. He ignored me again. I was presented to Constantine, and he turned to me, the tips of his mouth pulled up into the most sadistic smirk he’d shown me yet.

“My dear Bella,” he cooed and rested his hand on my shoulder. The chill that shot through me had been soothing at one time. It felt like another lifetime when Edward’s icy touch had ironically made me flush with heat. No longer. “I am so sorry you are in distress. It is almost over, I assure you.”

I took a deep breath and squared my shoulders. “You and I both know that isn’t true, Constantine.”

He beamed at my repetition of his words, his head cocking slightly to the left. “You are the most willful human I have ever encountered. Why is it, if you don’t mind me asking, that you would choose death over eternal life?”