✓ | 𝐒𝐔𝐏𝐄𝐑𝐍𝐎𝐕𝐀, j. hale [2]

XVIII. No More Lies

The small airport was deserted once they had finally arrived, with most of the people likely at the festival taking place just a few miles up the road. Due to Alice's excellent persuasion skills, they were able to procure first class tickets back to Seattle later that night; unfortunately, that meant that they had a few hours to kill before it was time to go home. And that meant that Evelyn had more time to be alone with her thoughts.

The group had settled into a quiet corner of the terminal, just next to their gate. Bella, Edward, Alice, and Jasper sat in the cramped airport seats, while Evelyn sat a small distance away in the corner where the wall and massive floor-to-ceiling windows connected. The salad and sandwich that Alice had found for her sat untouched by her side as her she stared glassy-eyed out into the twilight.

More than anything, Jasper wanted to be with her; to hold her tightly until the pain from today went away for good. But he also knew that she was still angry with him. He could feel the storm of emotions inside of her as she sat uncharacteristically still in the dark corner of the terminal. It pained him more than anything, but for now, he knew that she needed time to be alone and process the day before they could talk about anything else.

Evelyn was replaying Aro's words in her mind over and over; all she could see was the guilt on Will's face as Aro revealed his true role in the deaths of her parents. She had been silently crying since they had arrived back at the airport, but it seemed that her body had finally run out of the energy to even do that. She felt as if she was empty and like she could burst from the overhwhelming sadness inside of her at the same time.

Her body ached from the pain that Jane had all too willingly inflicted upon her earlier that day, her muscles screaming in silent protest everytime she shifted her body. She had needed Jasper's help to walk through the airport and was embarrassed to admit that he had been the one to lower her down to the ground where she now sat. Unfortunately, she would probably need the help of one of the vampires she was with to make it onto the plane and back to Forks without collapsing.

A sudden movement caught her eye, and she looked over to see Edward gently shifting a sleeping Bella onto Alice's shoulder so that he could stand. Once he had made sure that Bella would not wake, he made his way over to her slowly, and she knew he was giving her the chance to tell him to leave. She offered him a soft smile through her silent tears.

It's okay, she thought, not having the energy or words to speak after the events of the day, and he nodded as he sat down beside her. Though he was ice cold, it was nice to have someone familiar to be close to when she felt so unbelievably alone.

They sat in silence for a few moments, Edward reliving the day through her sad eyes and the storm of thoughts replaying inside her head. His heart broke for the girl beside him; she had been through so much pain and suffering in her short life, and to have so much brought up today must be too much for her to bear.

He grimaced when he saw the Volutri through her mind's eye. "The way that Aro told you what happened to your parents was unbelievably cruel. I'm sorry that you had to hear it like that."

At least it was the truth, Evelyn thought bitterly, and Edward could sense her hatred of Will bubbling up to the surface as she angrily pictured his face. She looked at him with tired eyes. I wouldn't have known otherwise.

Edward sighed, considering his next words carefully. "He wanted me to tell you a couple of things," he said finally, studying her face. He knew that she wouldn't like hearing this; truthfully, he didn't want to do any favors for the vampire who had betrayed her trust, either, but he had been able to see into his mind. He knew that much of what Will had done was against his moral compass and that he hadn't wanted to do it. But still, he had done it.