Crescent Moon

Chapter 16: My Apologies

BPOV

"Bella," gasped out what I finally recognized to be Annalie. "Don't hang up!" Her words started to rush now, as if she really was fearing the connection failing. "Before I die, I want you to know I'm sorry, I'm so sorry. I never ever should have blamed you for our parent's murder, or the murder of Sandra. There's nothing I can say to truly show remorse, but please know I am sorry. Forgive me; I was not in my right mind when I did everything. I am so sorry."

Tears welled in my eyes as Annalie relinquished me of a burden I didn't know that I was holding – she didn't blame me anymore. As though a weight had been lifted from my heart, I felt oddly freed. But then the sweet moment was broken when I caught onto something Annalie said.

"Wait," I choke out suddenly, my voice thick with emotion. "Annalie, you said 'before you die'. Are you in trouble?" My pitch raised rapidly near the end of my sentence, fear starting to flow like chipped ice through my veins.

"Don't worry about me!" she exclaimed breathlessly. "Just know I love you and Corrin; tell him that I love him too, won't you? And that I'm sorry to him as well because –"

Cutting her rambling short, I inserted in a panicked voice, "Annalie, what's going on? Do said before you need help? Where are you?"

"Just ignore when I asked for help, it was a brief moment of weakness," protested Annalie quickly. I remembered this well; hearing Annalie's voice, no matter what her emotion, was sometimes a little disorientating as she sounded almost like I did. And right now her voice sounded as though she was fleeing from death. My heart race quickly sped up and I started to scream, "Annalie, let me help you! Where are you?"

Through the speaker, I heard another voice filter through, a smooth male's voice, speaking Italian, "Run little girl, run all you want, you can't hide!" Annalie's panicked yelp made me flinch and grab at the branch I was sitting on that much tighter.

Then it hit me. Why Annalie feared for her life – there was only one other way, apart from me, that her life could be put in danger. It also explained the string of Italian flowing through the phone.

She was running from the Volturi.

"Annalie, I got it, you're in Italy!" I cried out, my panic and angst getting worse. "The Volturi are after you, are they?"

"Don't come here!" screeched Annalie loudly, her voice shrill with worry. "Bella, don't! The red eyes, don't trust the red eyes. If you see anyone you love with red eyes, kill them!" She rattled all this off at an increased pace. "Burn the red eyes! It's just bait!"

"Come on little girl, we won't kill you straightaway!" hissed the voice of the Italian pursuer, his voice faint as he was tracking my sister. My eyes narrowed at his implied threat.

"What are you saying?" I said referring to the last thing Annalie said, my voice heavy with confusion and worry lacing my tone, my emotions breaking down my control. I could feel myself being swept away in the tide of feelings, getting lost at sea, not really in control of myself anymore.

"Beware of the ice room, the air is paralyzing, a jail nearly impossible to escape from! Keep your inner fire alive!" yelled Annalie suddenly, as if she just remembered. The Italian cursing and yelling in the background was getting louder, and I knew Annalie was seconds from capture ... or death.