"What is the werewolves' part in this?" Tanya asked then, eyeing Jacob.
Jacob spoke1 before Edward could answer. "If the Volturi won't stop to listen about Nessie, I meanRenesmee," he corrected himself, remembering that Tanya would not understand his stupid nickname,"we will stop them.""Very brave, child, but that would be impossible for more experienced fighters than you are.""You don't know what we can do."Tanya shrugged2. "It is your own life, certainly, to spend as you choose."Jacob's eyes flickered3 to Renesmee—still in Carmen's arms with Kate hovering4 over them—and it waseasy to read the longing5 in them.
"She is special, that little one," Tanya mused6. "Hard to resist.""A very talented family," Eleazar murmured as he paced. His tempo7 was increasing; he flashed from thedoor to Carmen and back again every second. "A mind reader for a father, a shield for a mother, andthen whatever magic this extraordinary child has bewitched us with. I wonder if there is a name for whatshe does, or if it is the norm for a vampire8 hybrid9. As if such a thing could ever be considered normal! Avampire hybrid, indeed!""Excuse me," Edward said in a stunned10 voice. He reached out and caught Eleazar's shoulder as he wasabout to turn again for the door. "What did you just call my wife?"Eleazar looked at Edward curiously11, his manic pacing forgotten for the moment. "A shield, I think. She'sblocking me now, so I can't be sure."I stared at Eleazar, my brows furrowing12 in confusion. Shield? What did he mean about my blocking him?
I was standing13 right here beside him, not defensive14 in any way.
"A shield?" Edward repeated, bewildered.
"Come now, Edward! If I can't get a read on her, I doubt you can, either. Can you hear her thoughtsright now?"Eleazar asked.
"No," Edward murmured. "But I've never been able to do that. Even when she was human.""Never?" Eleazar blinked. "Interesting. That would indicate a rather powerful latent talent, if it wasmanifesting so clearly even before the transformation15. I can't feel a way through her shield to get a senseof it at all. Yet she must be raw still—she's only a few months old." The look he gave Edward now wasalmost exasperated16. "And apparently17 completely unaware18 of what she's doing. Totally unconscious.
Ironic. Aro sent me all over the world searching for such anomalies, and you simply stumble across it byaccident and don't even realize what you have." Eleazar shook his head in disbelief.
I frowned. "What are you talking about? How can I be a shield? What does that even mean?" All Icould picture in my head was a ridiculous medieval suit of armor.
Eleazar leaned his head to one side as he examined me. "I suppose we were overly formal about it in theguard. In truth, categorizing talents is a subjective19, haphazard20 business; every talent is unique, neverexactly the same thing twice. But you, Bella, are fairly easy to classify. Talents that are purely21 defensive,that protect some aspect of the bearer, are always called shields. Have you ever tested your abilities?
Blocked anyone besides me and your mate?"It took me few seconds, despite how quickly my new brain worked, to organize my answer.
"It only works with certain things," I told him. "My head is sort of... private. But it doesn't stop Jasperfrom being able to mess with my mood or Alice from seeing my future.""Purely a mental defense22." Eleazar nodded to himself. "Limited, but strong.""Aro couldn't hear her," Edward interjected. "Though she was human when they met."Eleazar's eyes widened.
"Jane tried to hurt me, but she couldn't," I said. "Edward thinks Demetri can't find me, and that Aleccan't bother me, either. Is that good?"Eleazar, still gaping23, nodded. "Quite.""A shield!" Edward said, deep satisfaction saturating24 his tone. "I never thought of it that way. The onlyone I've ever met before was Renata, and what she did was so different."Eleazar had recovered slightly. "Yes, no talent ever manifests in precisely25 the same way, because no oneever thinks in exactly the same way.""Who's Renata? What does she do?" I asked. Renesmee was interested, too, leaning away fromCarmen so that she could see around Kate.
"Renata is Aro's personal bodyguard," Eleazar told me. "A very practical kind of shield, and a verystrong one."I vaguely26 remembered a small crowd of vampires27 hovering close to Aro in his macabre28 tower, somemale, some female. I couldn't remember the women's faces in the uncomfortable, terrifying memory. Onemust have been Renata.
"I wonder...," Eleazar mused. "You see, Renata is a powerful shield against a physical attack. Ifsomeone approaches her—or Aro, as she is always close beside him in a hostile situation—they findthemselves... diverted.
There's a force around her that repels29, though it's almost unnoticeable. You simply find yourself going adifferent direction than you planned, with a confused memory as to why you wanted to go that other wayin the first place. She can project her shield several meters out from herself. She also protects Caius andMarcus, too, when they have a need, but Aro is her priority.
"What she does isn't actually physical, though. Like the vast majority of our gifts, it takes place inside themind. If she tried to keep you back, I wonder who would win?" He shook his head. "I've never heard ofAro's or Jane's gifts being thwarted30.""Momma, you're special," Renesmee told me without any surprise, like she was commenting on the colorof my clothes.
I felt disoriented. Didn't I already know my gift? I had my super-self-control that had allowed me to skipright over the horrifying31 newborn year. Vampires only had one extra ability at most, right?
Or had Edward been correct in the beginning? Before Carlisle had suggested that my self-control couldbe something beyond the natural, Edward had thought my restraint was just a product of goodpreparation— focus and attitude,he'd declared.
Which one had been right? Was there more I could do? A name and a category for what I was?
"Can you project?" Kate asked interestedly.
"Project?" I asked.
"Push it out from yourself," Kate explained. "Shield someone besides yourself.""I don't know. I've never tried. I didn't know I should do that.""Oh, you might not be able to," Kate said quickly. "Heavens knows I've been working on it for centuriesand the best I can do is run a current over my skin."I stared at her, mystified.
"Kate's got an offensive skill," Edward said. "Sort of like Jane."I flinched32 away from Kate automatically, and she laughed.
"I'm not sadistic33 about it," she assured me. "It's just something that comes in handy during a fight."Kate's words were sinking in, beginning to make connections in my mind. Shield someone besidesyourself she'd said. As if there were some way for me to include another person in my strange, quirkysilent head.
I remembered Edward cringing34 on the ancient stones of the Volturi castle turret35. Though this was ahuman memory, it was sharper, more painful than most of the others—like it had been branded into thetissues of my brain.
What if I could stop that from happening ever again? What if I could protect him? Protect Renesmee?
What if there was even the faintest glimmer36 of a possibility that I could shield them, too?
"You have to teach me what to do!" I insisted, unthinkingly grabbing Kate's arm. "You have to show mehow!"Kate winced37 at my grip. "Maybe—if you stop trying to crush my radius38.""Oops! Sorry!""You're shielding, all right," Kate said. "That move should have about shocked your arm off. You didn'tfeelanything just now?""That wasn't really necessary, Kate. She didn't mean any harm," Edward muttered under his breath.
Neither of us paid attention to him.
"No, I didn't feel anything. Were you doing your electric current thing?""I was. Hmm. I've never met anyone who couldn't feel it, immortal39 or otherwise.""You said you project it? On your skin?"Kate nodded. "It used to be just in my palms. Kind of like Aro.""Or Renesmee," Edward interjected.
"But after a lot of practice, I can radiate the current all over my body. It's a good defense. Anyone whotries to touch me drops like a human that's been Tasered. It only downs him for a second, but that's longenough."I was only half-listening to Kate, my thoughts racing40 around the idea that I might be able to protect mylittle family if I could just learn fast enough. I wished fervently41 that I might be good at this projecting thing,too, like I was somehow mysteriously good at all the other aspects of being a vampire. My human lifehad not prepared me for things that came naturally, and I couldn't make myself trust this aptitude42 to last.
It felt like I had never wanted anything so badly before this; to be able to protect what I loved.
Because I was so preoccupied43, I didn't notice the silent exchange going on between Edward and Eleazaruntil it became a spoken conversation.
"Can you think of even one exception, though?" Edward asked.
I looked over to make sense of his comment and realized that everyone else was already staring at thetwo men. They were leaning toward each other intently, Edward's expression tight with suspicion,Eleazar's unhappy and reluctant.
"I don't want to think of them that way," Eleazar said through his teeth. I was surprised at the suddenchange in the atmosphere.
"If you're right—," Eleazar began again.
Edward cut him off. "The thought was yours, not mine.""If I'm right... I can't even grasp what that would mean. It would change everything about the worldwe've created. It would change the meaning of my life. What I have been a part of.""Your intentions were always the best, Eleazar.""Would that even matter? What have I done? How many lives ..."Tanya put her hand on Eleazar's shoulder in a comforting gesture. "What did we miss, my friend? I wantto know so that I can argue with these thoughts. You've never done anything worth castigating44 yourselfthis way.""Oh, haven't I?" Eleazar muttered. Then he shrugged out from under her hand and began his pacingagain, faster even than before.
Tanya watched him for half a second and then focused on Edward. "Explain."Edward nodded, his tense eyes following Eleazar as he spoke. "He was trying to understand why somany ofthe Volturi would come to punish us. It's not the way they do things. Certainly, we are the biggest maturecoven they've dealt with, but in the past other covens have joined to protect themselves, and they neverpresented much of a challenge despite their numbers. We are more closely bonded45, and that's a factor,but not a huge one.
"He was remembering other times that covens have been punished, for one thing or the other, and apattern occurred to him. It was a pattern that the rest of the guard would never have noticed, sinceEleazar was the one passing the pertinent46 intelligence privately47 to Aro. A pattern that only repeated everyother century or so.""What was this pattern?" Carmen asked, watching Eleazar as Edward was.
"Aro does not often personally attend a punishing expedition," Edward said. "But in the past, when Arowanted something in particular, it was never long before evidence turned up proving that this coven orthat coven had committed some unpardonable crime. The ancients would decide to go along to watch theguard administer justice. And then, once the coven was all but destroyed, Aro would grant a pardon toone member whose thoughts, he would claim, were particularly repentant48. Always, it would turn out thatthis vampire had the gift Aro had admired. Always, this person was given a place with the guard. Thegifted vampire was won over quickly, always so grateful for the honor. There were no exceptions.""It must be a heady thing to be chosen," Kate suggested.
"Ha!" Eleazar snarled49, still in motion.
"There is one among the guard," Edward said, explaining Eleazar's angry reaction. "Her name is Chelsea.
She has influence over the emotional ties between people. She can both loosen and secure these ties. Shecould make someone feel bonded to the Volturi, to want to belong, to want to please them___"Eleazar came to an abrupt50 halt. "We all understood why Chelsea was important. In a fight, if we couldseparate allegiances between allied51 covens, we could defeat them that much more easily. If we coulddistance the innocent members of a coven emotionally from the guilty, justice could be done withoutunnecessary brutality—the guilty could be punished without interference, and the innocent could bespared. Otherwise, it was impossible to keep the coven from fighting as a whole. So Chelsea wouldbreak the ties that bound them together. It seemed a great kindness to me, evidence of Aro's mercy. Idid suspect that Chelsea kept our own band more tightly knit, but that, too, was a good thing. It made usmore effective. It helped us coexist more easily."This clarified old memories for me. It had not made sense to me before how the guard obeyed theirmasters so gladly, with almost lover-like devotion.
"How strong is her gift?" Tanya asked with an edge to her voice. Her gaze quickly touched on eachmember of her family.
Eleazar shrugged. "I was able to leave with Carmen." And then he shook his head. "But anything weakerthan the bond between partners is in danger. In a normal coven, at least. Those are weaker bonds thanthose in our family, though. Abstaining52 from human blood makes us more civilized—lets us form truebonds of love. I doubt she could turn our allegiances, Tanya."Tanya nodded, seeming reassured53, while Eleazar continued with his analysis.
"I could only think that the reason Aro had decided54 to come himself, to bring so many with him, isbecause his goal is not punishment but acquisition," Eleazar said. "He needs to be there to control thesituation. But he needs the entire guard for protection from such a large, gifted coven. On the other hand,that leaves the other ancients unprotected in Volterra. Too risky—someone might try to take advantage.
So they all come together. How else could he be sure to preserve the gifts that he wants? He must wantthem very badly," Eleazar mused.
Edward's voice was low as a breath. "From what I saw of his thoughts last spring, Aro's never wantedanything more than he wants Alice."I felt my mouth fall open, remembering the nightmarish pictures I had imagined long ago: Edward andAlice in black cloaks with bloodred eyes, their faces cold and remote as they stood close as shadows,Aro's hands on theirs.... Had Alice seen this more recently? Had she seen Chelsea trying to strip awayher love for us, to bind55 her to Aro and Caius and Marcus?
"Is that why Alice left?" I asked, my voice breaking on her name.
Edward put his hand against my cheek. "I think it must be. To keep Aro from gaining the thing he wantsmost of all. To keep her power out of his hands."I heard Tanya and Kate murmuring in disturbed voices and remembered that they hadn't known aboutAlice.
"He wants you, too," I whispered.
Edward shrugged, his face suddenly a little too composed. "Not nearly as much. I can't really give himanything more than he already has. And of course that's dependent on his finding a way to force me to dohis will. He knows me, and he knows how unlikely that is." He raised one eyebrow56 sardonically57.
Eleazar frowned at Edward's nonchalance58. "He also knows your weaknesses," Eleazar pointed59 out, andthen he looked at me.
"It's nothing we need to discuss now," Edward said quickly.
Eleazar ignored the hint and continued. "He probably wants your mate, too, regardless. He must havebeen intrigued60 by a talent that could defy him in its human incarnation."Edward was uncomfortable with this topic. I didn't like it, either. If Aro wanted me to do something—anything—all he had to do was threaten Edward and I would comply. And vice61 versa.
Was death the lesser62 concern? Was it really capture we should fear?
Edward changed the subject. "I think the Volturi were waiting for this—for some pretext63. They couldn'tknow what form their excuse would come in, but the plan was already in place for when it did come.
That's why Alice saw their decision before Irina triggered it. The decision was already made, just waitingfor the pretense64 of a justification65.""If the Volturi are abusing the trust all immortals66 have placed in them...," Carmen murmured.
"Does it matter?" Eleazar asked. "Who would believe it? And even if others could be convinced that theVolturi are exploiting their power, how would it make any difference? No one can stand against them.""Though some of us are apparently insane enough to try," Kate muttered.
Edward shook his head. "You're only here to witness, Kate. Whatever Aro's goal, I don't think he'sready totarnish the Volturi's reputation for it. If we can take away his argument against us, he'll be forced to leaveus in peace.""Of course," Tanya murmured.
No one looked convinced. For a few long minutes, nobody said anything.
Then Iheard the sound of tires turning off the highway pavement onto the Cullens' dirt drive.
"Oh crap, Charlie," I muttered. "Maybe the Denalis could hang out upstairs until—""No," Edward said in a distant voice. His eyes were far away, staring blankly at the door. "It's not yourfather." His gaze focused on me. "Alice sent Peter and Charlotte, afterall. Time to get ready for the nextround."
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1
spoke
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| n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说 | |
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shrugged
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| vt.耸肩（shrug的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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flickered
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| （通常指灯光）闪烁，摇曳( flicker的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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hovering
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| 鸟( hover的现在分词 )； 靠近（某事物）； （人）徘徊； 犹豫 | |
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longing
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| n.（for）渴望 | |
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mused
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| v.沉思，冥想( muse的过去式和过去分词 )；沉思自语说（某事） | |
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tempo
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| n.(音乐的)速度；节奏，行进速度 | |
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vampire
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| n.吸血鬼 | |
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hybrid
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| n.(动，植）杂种，混合物 | |
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stunned
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| adj. 震惊的，惊讶的 动词stun的过去式和过去分词 | |
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curiously
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| adv.有求知欲地；好问地；奇特地 | |
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furrowing
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| v.犁田，开沟( furrow的现在分词 ) | |
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standing
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| n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的 | |
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defensive
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| adj.防御的；防卫的；防守的 | |
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transformation
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| n.变化；改造；转变 | |
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exasperated
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| adj.恼怒的 | |
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apparently
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| adv.显然地；表面上，似乎 | |
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unaware
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| a.不知道的，未意识到的 | |
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subjective
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| a.主观(上)的，个人的 | |
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haphazard
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| adj.无计划的，随意的，杂乱无章的 | |
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purely
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| adv.纯粹地，完全地 | |
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defense
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| n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩 | |
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gaping
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| adj.口的；张口的；敞口的；多洞穴的v.目瞪口呆地凝视( gape的现在分词 )；张开，张大 | |
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saturating
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| 浸湿，浸透( saturate的现在分词 )； 使…大量吸收或充满某物 | |
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precisely
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| adv.恰好，正好，精确地，细致地 | |
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vaguely
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| adv.含糊地，暖昧地 | |
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vampires
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| n.吸血鬼( vampire的名词复数 )；吸血蝠；高利贷者；（舞台上的）活板门 | |
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macabre
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| adj.骇人的，可怖的 | |
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repels
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| v.击退( repel的第三人称单数 )；使厌恶；排斥；推开 | |
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thwarted
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| 阻挠( thwart的过去式和过去分词 )； 使受挫折； 挫败； 横过 | |
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horrifying
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| a.令人震惊的，使人毛骨悚然的 | |
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flinched
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| v.（因危险和痛苦）退缩，畏惧( flinch的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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sadistic
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| adj.虐待狂的 | |
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cringing
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| adj.谄媚，奉承 | |
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turret
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| n.塔楼，角塔 | |
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glimmer
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| v.发出闪烁的微光；n.微光，微弱的闪光 | |
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winced
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| 赶紧避开，畏缩( wince的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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radius
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| n.半径，半径范围；有效航程，范围，界限 | |
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immortal
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| adj.不朽的；永生的，不死的；神的 | |
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racing
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| n.竞赛，赛马；adj.竞赛用的，赛马用的 | |
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fervently
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| adv.热烈地，热情地，强烈地 | |
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aptitude
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| n.(学习方面的)才能，资质，天资 | |
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preoccupied
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| adj.全神贯注的，入神的；被抢先占有的；心事重重的v.占据（某人）思想，使对…全神贯注，使专心于( preoccupy的过去式) | |
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44
castigating
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| v.严厉责骂、批评或惩罚（某人）( castigate的现在分词 ) | |
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bonded
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| n.有担保的，保税的，粘合的 | |
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pertinent
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| adj.恰当的；贴切的；中肯的；有关的；相干的 | |
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privately
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| adv.以私人的身份，悄悄地，私下地 | |
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repentant
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| adj.对…感到悔恨的 | |
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snarled
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| v.（指狗）吠，嗥叫， （人）咆哮( snarl的过去式和过去分词 )；咆哮着说，厉声地说 | |
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abrupt
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| adj.突然的，意外的；唐突的，鲁莽的 | |
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allied
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| adj.协约国的；同盟国的 | |
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abstaining
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| 戒（尤指酒），戒除( abstain的现在分词 )； 弃权（不投票） | |
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53
reassured
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| adj.使消除疑虑的；使放心的v.再保证，恢复信心( reassure的过去式和过去分词) | |
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decided
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| adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的 | |
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bind
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| vt.捆，包扎；装订；约束；使凝固；vi.变硬 | |
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eyebrow
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| n.眉毛，眉 | |
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sardonically
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| adv.讽刺地，冷嘲地 | |
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nonchalance
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| n.冷淡，漠不关心 | |
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pointed
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| adj.尖的，直截了当的 | |
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intrigued
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| adj.好奇的，被迷住了的v.搞阴谋诡计(intrigue的过去式)；激起…的兴趣或好奇心；“intrigue”的过去式和过去分词 | |
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61
vice
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| n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的 | |
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62
lesser
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| adj.次要的，较小的；adv.较小地，较少地 | |
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63
pretext
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| n.借口，托词 | |
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64
pretense
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| n.矫饰，做作，借口 | |
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65
justification
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| n.正当的理由；辩解的理由 | |
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66
immortals
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| 不朽的人物( immortal的名词复数 )； 永生不朽者 | |
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