Life Is Just A Bowl Of Cherries

Badly

Badly - bad·ly - /ˈbadlē/

1. in an unsatisfactory, inadequate, or unsuccessful way

2. to a great or serious degree; severely

3. guilty or regretful

Odessa ran through the city to get to the closest lookout. There were five in total: One on the north side of the city, one on the south side, one on the east side, one on the west side, and one that circulated throughout the city in case someone slipped past. The last one would be tricky to locate as they had no set location, but the other four would be easy to find. She silently wished they were dead by the time she reached them as she knew Aro and Caius would show no mercy for what had happened. It was a law that vampires were not allowed to hunt within the city limits. Odessa once thought that law was put in place simply so that the Volturi could live under the radar undetected. Now, she wondered if it was a stipulation the city officials put in place. Odessa always did wonder how the Volturi was able to bring in large crowds of people every so often without creating chaos.

Group feeding was not Odessa's favorite activity. Not only did she feel uncomfortable feeding with others, she hated the idea of feeding on children. It wasn't often that children made it into the group, but Odessa couldn't help but be uncomfortable with it happening. Usually by the time the group feeding came around, everyone was thirsty and ready to sink their teeth into something, so she didn't hold it against them heavily. Still, she didn't participate in them. Sometimes Alec would feel her tenseness and would take her out of the city limits to eat. It was easier feeding with Alec because she didn't have to worry about him accidentally attacking her due to his emotions being in overdrive. He made sure she ate first before he found something for himself. Sometimes, he'd find two people for them and they'd drink together. Odessa liked those times the most because both of them were full at the same time and could experience the satisfaction of being full together. After they had their fill, they'd find some place to lay down and look up at the stars. It was silent and all they had was each other in the moment, but it was enough.

Odessa remembered the last time they had done that. She didn't know if it was because they had just fed, if it was the way the stars were particularly bright that night, or if it was the way Alec had looked at her, but they had spent the night in each other's arms. It was the most intimate she had been with anyone. She had been lost to the sensations of Alec's smooth hands running over her body, his tender nips as he bit into her skin passionately, and his biting fingers as they latched onto her hips to enable him to plunge into her. She had never lost herself to someone with such a fervor, and by the time they were done, the sun had risen to replace the soft glow of the stars above. She wished they could spend time together like that again, but they had to deal with the likes of Vera and her group of opposers first.

Odessa found the guard stationed in the western part of the city first. She searched the perimeter in which the guard was given and found her a few seconds in. She was nothing but a pile of ash, and the only thing that made her discernable was the Volturi crest laid haphazardly on the pile. Odessa grimaced and picked up the crest. She investigated the surrounding area to see if she could come up with any clues, but she found none. She sped off to find Afton and Chelsea to inform them of what she found.

They were walking around, observing things and running in and out of buildings. Odessa caught them when they were closing the door of a small home. She grimaced when she caught a whiff of blood and wondered what had happened in the tiny home. Afton and Chelsea stopped moving when they saw her and walked towards her.

"What happened here?" Odessa asked.

"The people who lived in this house were murdered," Afton said with a frown. "Their necks were snapped and their blood was drained from their bodies."