The Haunted Man MarcusxBella

Chapter Three: The Unsettled Truth

Chapter Three: The Unsettled Truth,

"Just who are YOU?!" Bella shouted at the man before her, still sitting; grave and intense.

Bella felt uncomfortable and grew more uneasy with his silent unchanged manner as she came undone with fright. She was a strong individual and independent to a fault. Though she had a measure of confidence, she did not care to find herself in a creepy old house with a stranger and his unknown intent for her. The longer he stared at her, something of her previous confidence abandoned her as she faced him and the unsettling possibilities.

Confidence in girls was all a charade after a certain point. There was a time to stop the pretending and it was now become clear of that moment. Reality hit home in her dangerous situation as her courage ebbed in a quick rush from her body that left her feeling drained and afraid.

"If you are not the caretaker then WHO?!" Bella repeated as she started to shake in her raging emotions.

"No, I am not the caretaker. I am one of the owners of the estate. The name is Volturi." He stated casually as if he were just taking of the weather.

Mis melancholy voice and words ran through her like electricity, giving her a surprising jolt of dread and uncertainty. So much, that Bella felt as if she would faint.

Unimportant things leapt up into her mind and it puzzled her at a moment like this. In her pocket was only her journal and a pencil and she could feel it is still there, sticking out the top a bit. She felt too, the extra bit of clothing she had thought of to put on, to ward off the cold just in case there was no sufficient heat. A hundred different things flashed in her head, foolish random thoughts, without meaning.

She could not stop the images of Charlie and wondered how many fish he had caught, if any. Of her mother, wondering where in the world she was now, as she traveled with her husband. On and on, the way it does when one is really frightened. Also, guilty thoughts of what her parents would think if they found out she had gone without telling anyone or worse still, not leaving a note.

"The man who owns this place?' she said aghast.

That is right. Marcus Volturi." He stated simply.

Bella felt her blood run cold to his declaration. She felt deceived in some way and somehow sensed the truth was being held from her deliberately.

"D...did Mr. Arosandro send you to meet me here?" She asked searching for the more answers.

"No." He replied in a voice that touched her heart with its lonely sound.

"What!? Why?!" Bella asked, instinctively backing away.

"I have need of you." He said mysteriously.

"No...I'm leaving!" She shouted walking backwards to get to her things on the bed that held her truck keys, all the while not taking her eyes from him.

Seeing her inching away, Marcus got up swiftly and moved in a blink of an eye. He stood now in the path of the door to block her way out. She panted now with every breath as her heart rate skyrocketed. She now terrified, went into fight or flight mode and stood ridged looking around for a place to run away.

"I'm alone, Bella. Sad and have long existed with so much pain. Dead yet immortal and soulless inside." He said as if his heart lay on the floor broken.

Bella felt the need for aggressive assertion right then. She came forward and stood before him, digging her nails in her palm and clutching her fist in anger. She was determined to show him that she was an individual and a modern woman with a free spirit and that she cannot be ordered about.