Mia Cara

Chapter 6 Ensnared

One day before St. Marcus Day

I leaned back with a sigh in the iron wrought chair, gazing melancholically up at the stars.

The past few days have been like a dream. Learning so much more about architecture than I could at Forks High and getting to see sights not even Esme's occasional lessons could begin to compare to, it was all a dream come true really. And of course, Demetri had become a welcome constant at the end of my day. His flickering smiles and the way he always seemed to be on the edge of smirking before his expression would soften for a moment. I knew that it was highly likely nothing would come out of our short time together, but that couldn't stop my heart from beating a little bit faster and my mood lifting just a little bit higher each time I saw him. And I had decided that, no matter what happened at the end of my time in Volterra, I would enjoy the time I had left with him.

Tonight, however, I somewhat dreaded seeing him again.

'So why are you sitting here where you know he'll be able to find you?'

I mentally batted away the sarcastic voice in my head. It was true, but it didn't stop a tiny part of me from hoping he wouldn't come tonight... and then the majority part of me was relieved when Demetri came into view.

I watched his approach, once again struck by just how graceful he was. He didn't just walk - he glided. There was really no other way to explain how he crossed the garden. His movements were always so smooth and flawless that I would have been constantly reminded of the Cullens if I hadn't forced all memories of them away. The only thing different was that there was an odd quality to his light footsteps, as if he was always on the verge of falling into a predatory stalk. And then I again dismissed the thought; I had clearly spent far too much time with the supernatural to be seeing 'monsters of the night' everywhere.

Not unlike me, Demetri appeared to be deep in thought today and he was missing his casual grin as he observed me. I wondered why but my own thoughts occupied me too much for me to pry into his. So I tried to smile at him in greeting as he approached, as I usually would. But even I could tell it was strained. Immediately, I saw him change too: whatever had been on his mind before appeared to be pushed aside and his keen, dark eyes searched mine intently even as he settled down opposite me.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing." I shook my head, but he was as persistent as I had discovered he could be.

"No, it's something." He tilted his head to view me better. "Don't lie to me, Mia. Tell me."

I grimaced slightly. Over the course of the past few days, I had discovered that Demetri was not only persistent but also very observant. I had always prided myself on my ability to hide my emotions, but it seemed that Demetri could see right through me.

So after a moment I began hesitantly, "My dad called me this morning."

Demetri looked puzzled, as if wondering how that could dampen my mood. I'd already told him about my dad before, and he knew that there were few people I loved more than Charlie Swan even if my dad's inability to talk about emotional subjects and tendency to avoid relationship problems sometimes annoyed me. I was still convinced it was a part of the reason that Bella had never recovered after Edward left; dad had been all too fine with just leaving her and keeping me from upsetting her until she felt ready to talk. Still, I loved my dad and Demetri knew it from the way I talked about him.

"What did he say?" Demetri asked carefully.

I bit my lip briefly before I finally confessed, "A good friend of his died a few hours ago."

Demetri stilled at my words, while I continued dejectedly.

"Apparently, it was a heart attack. My dad called to let me know he was going to his funeral."