Memories from the Past

Chapter Four

(Samara Weaving as Athenodora Volturi)

"Volterra? Alice, Edward where in the bloody hell are you taking me?" my anxiety and impatience had reached its peak. Alice shot me a reassuring smile that felt like it had a hint of sympathy mixed in it.
"The place for all your answers. Like we promised. So, if you could please answer my questions now?" Edward asked as we got into a car. Alice took the wheel and made the car drive away with a roaring engine.
"No chance." I said as I looked outside the window. A sigh escaped his lips as Alice was weaving, too fast, through the thick airport traffic—sliding through tiny spaces between the cars. As I watched out the window I saw the first the city of Florence and then the Tuscan landscape flashing by with blurring speed. This was my first trip anywhere, and maybe my last, too. I had no idea where these two... creatures where taking me, but Alice's driving frightened me. Different thoughts made a speed run through my mind. Almost anything that these two might be flashed before my eyes yet nothing seemed to make sense. At the same time I was too tortured with anxiety to really see the hills or the walled towns that looked like castles in the distance, making me jump up a little when they started to speak again.
"Do you see anything more?" Edward asked
"There's something going on," Alice muttered.
"Some kind of festival. The streets are full of people and red flags. What's the date today?" I wasn't entirely sure.
"The nineteenth, maybe?"
"Well, that's ironic. It's Saint Marcus Day."
"Which means?" She chuckled darkly.
"The city holds a celebration every year. As the legend goes, a Christian missionary, a Father Marcus drove all the vampires from Volterra fifteen hundred years ago. The story claims he was martyred in Romania, still trying to drive away the vampire scourge. Of course that's nonsense—he's never left the city. But that's where some of the superstitions about things like crosses and garlic come from. Father Marcus used them so successfully. And vampires don't trouble Volterra, so they must work." Her smile was sardonic. "It's become more of a celebration of the city, and recognition for the police force—after all, Volterra is an amazingly safe city. The police get the credit."
I wasn't sure if she was being ironic or not. But something, deep within me, told me she wasn't. A small red car seemed to be racing backward as Alice zoomed around it.
"There," Alice said abruptly, pointing to the castle city atop the closest hill. I stared at it, feeling the very first hint of a new kind of feeling. The feeling of anxiety still present. And yet, now, as I stared at the ancient sienna walls and towers crowning the peak of the steep hill, I felt another, more selfish feeling fell over me. The feeling of complete peace.

We began the steep climb and the road grew congested. As we wound higher, the cars became too close together for Alice to weave insanely between them anymore. We slowed to a crawl behind a little tan Peugeot. The cars continued to edge forward, one car length at a time. The sun beamed down brilliantly, seeming already overhead. The cars crept one by one toward the city. As we got closer, I could see cars parked by the side of the road with people getting out to walk the rest of the way. At first I thought it was just impatience—something I could easily understand. But then we came around a switchback, and I could see the filled parking lot outside the city wall, the crowds of people walking through the gates. No one was being allowed to drive through. Now that I was looking, and we were crawling slowly enough to see, I could tell that it was very windy. The people crowding toward the gate gripped their hats and tugged their hair out of their faces. Their clothes billowed around them. I also noticed that the colour red was everywhere. Red shirts, red hats, red flags dripping like long ribbons beside the gate, whipping in the wind—as I watched, the brilliant crimson scarf one woman had tied around her hair was caught in a sudden gust. It twisted up into the air above her, writhing like it was alive. She reached for it, jumping in the air, but it continued to flutter higher, a patch of bloody colour against the dull, ancient walls.
"I am trying to get as close to the clock tower as possible. That is the place for all your answers. And hopefully ours as well." Alice said as she was near the front of the line. A man in a navy blue uniform was directing the flow of traffic, turning the cars away from the full lot. I looked at her in confusion. Surely the walk up wasn't that far? And apart from the wind it seemed like a nice day, the sun was shining brightly and I was dying to get out of this car.
"Can we not just walk to the clock tower?" I asked as I watched the other cars U-turn and headed back to find a place beside the road.
"Better not." Edward said. Then it was Alice's turn. The uniformed man motioned lazily, not paying attention. Alice accelerated, edging around him and heading for the gate. He shouted something at us, but held his ground, waving frantically to keep the next car from following our bad example. The man at the gate wore a matching uniform. As we approached him, the throngs of tourists passed, crowding the sidewalks, staring curiously at the pushy, flashy Porsche. The guard stepped into the middle of the street. Alice angled the car carefully before she came to a full stop. She swiftly reached behind the seat and grabbed something from her bag. The guard came around the car with an irritated expression, and tapped on her window angrily. She rolled the window down halfway, and I watched him do a double take when he saw the face behind the dark glass.
"I'm sorry, only tour buses allowed in the city today, miss," he said in English, with a heavy accent. He was apologetic, now, as if he wished he had better news for the strikingly beautiful woman.
"It's a private tour," Alice said, flashing an alluring smile. She reached her hand out of the window, into the sunlight. She took his hand, still raised from tapping her window, and pulled it into the car. She put something into his palm, and folded his fingers around it. His face was dazed as he retrieved his hand and stared at the thick roll of money he now held. The outside bill was a thousand dollar bill. "Is this a joke?" he mumbled. Alice's smile was blinding.
"Only if you think it's funny." Did she just bribe him? Bloody hell. I am an idiot for agreeing to this trip. Maybe the answers to what had happened to my mother before she took her life no longer seemed important, as I was sure I would die once I knew those answers. The police officer looked at her, his eyes staring wide. Should I shout? Tell him they were dangerous? My Italian wasn't too bad. I could try.
"I'm in a wee bit of a hurry," Alice hinted, still smiling and taking me out of my thoughts. The guard blinked twice, and then shoved the money inside his vest. He took a step away from the window and waved us on. None of the passing people seemed to notice the quiet exchange. Alice drove into the city, parking the car as close to the clock tower as possible. I got out of the car and took a deep breath, breathing in the smell of sunlight hitting the ancient stones, hoping this would not be the last time I would smell this scent. The calming feeling slowly winning it from the anxiety. For now.

"Brother, sister, calm yourselves please." The man with raven like hair spoke.
"She is here." Was all the man got in response, a sigh escaping his lips.