The Hunted

Chapter 15

A/N: Well folks, this is the last regular chapter.  Epilogue will be next week, and then I'll be taking a break for a month or so.  I've got about ten chapters of my next story done (an AH/College story), and I'll begin posting that in January.  Thanks for coming along for the ride, and a big thanks to Gatorgrl91 for her awesome beta skills.

....

Carlisle came down the stairs, running a hand over his face, and even though we didn't age, he looked years older than he normally did.

"How is he?" Esme asked, twisting her hands together.

"He'll live, but he's pretty hurt.  We'll let him rest for a while before talking to him," he told us, and I knew we were all anxious to find out what the hell was happening in Volterra.

I glanced over at Samuel and saw him pacing back and forth.  I knew he wanted answers just as much as the rest of us, but he was also giving off major vibes of anxiousness and distrust.  According to Jasper, Samuel wasn't comfortable being under the same roof as a member of the Volturi.  I understood completely, especially since Samuel had just begun to accept that all vampires weren't bad. 

"There's no time," we heard Aro say, his accent thick and his voice weary.

We heard movement from upstairs, and we looked up in time to see Aro stumbling down the stairs.  His hands clutched the railing so hard that it started to break, and Carlisle rushed to him immediately.

"You really should rest," Carlisle insisted, but Aro shook his head.

"No," he croaked out.  "They could be on their way here.  They know that I'd come to you for help."

"What exactly is going on?" Samuel demanded to know, and Aro turned to look at Samuel. 

"Who is this?" Aro asked, gesturing toward Samuel.

"Samuel Allison," Samuel said.  "I'm a hun—"

"Yes, yes," Aro said with a wave of his hand.  "I know who you are.  We know who all the hunters are."

My eyebrows rose at his words as did Samuel's. 

"We keep detailed information about all hunters," Aro explained as he took in our expressions.  "It pays to know who your enemies are, and their weaknesses.  It's how my brothers have been able to manipulate and use hunters to their advantage over the years."

Samuel's face darkened at Aro's words, and I could see he was itching to light someone up, more specifically, the Volturi brothers.

"My brothers," Aro continued, wincing a little as he sat down on the couch, "have made several decisions that I don't agree with, and it left us at an impasse, or so I thought.  Marcus and Caius, mainly Marcus, has been nurturing the idea of enslaving humans to serve us and be our food supply, much like cattle on a ranch.  They have this idea of giving out territories to different vampires and allowing those vampires to rule their territories however they see fit.  All the humans in that vampire's territory would be under their control. It's barbaric and archaic, and I refused to be a part of it."

"Fuck that!" Samuel spat out, and I agreed.  We couldn't allow that to happen, and let's face it, humans were weaker than vampires.  Sure, some of them would be capable of taking a few vampires out here and there, as had been proven by the hunters, but most of the humans wouldn't stand a chance.

"We can't allow that to happen," Alice spoke up, and we all nodded in agreement.

"I'll do whatever it takes to stop them, but we have to get the Romanians on our side.  They're extremely powerful.  Marcus and Caius will have most of the guard backing them up, and Felix has been sent to recruit others," Aro said.