Chapter 122: When the Wish Came True

Without waiting for Jane to respond, Sophie dashed out from beneath the treehouse and sprinted toward the dark, rain-shrouded edge of the marsh.

She was racing against the falling rain itself.

Ignoring the mud and water soaking the ground, Sophie charged forward with all her strength, determined to reach the parked sports car before the downpour drenched its leather seats. By the time she arrived beneath the tree where it was parked, her shoes were already caked in mud.

After wiping the worst of the dirt from the soles, Sophie carefully climbed into the driver's seat, started the engine, and waited patiently as the convertible roof and windows crept upward at their agonizingly slow pace.

The sound of raindrops striking the hood differed subtly from those hitting the glass. Once the roof finally sealed shut, Sophie turned off the engine, slipped off her shoes, and folded her legs beneath her silk stockings on the seat. She needed a few moments alone.

The damp scent of earth drifted through the narrow gaps around the windows, carrying with it the fragrances of wet wood, insects, rain, and freshly turned soil. Everything smelled vividly alive, so much softer than the cold stone walls of Volterra. After spending only a single day with the Irish Coven, Sophie could already feel the profound difference between their way of life and the Volturi's.

There were no leaders and guards here.

No Black Room built to imprison lovers who had become enemies.

They certainly weren't wealthy either.

Earlier, Siobhan had asked what Sophie planned to do after Jane recovered.

She had genuinely considered the question.

Yet after thinking it through, she realized she could hardly imagine a future that didn't somehow involve the Volturi.

Life beneath the leaders was harsh, rigid, and bound by an unforgiving hierarchy.

She still wasn't accustomed to it.

But people also struggled to imagine lives they had never seen.

Joining a warm, close-knit family like the Irish Coven and becoming someone's wife, sister, or daughter... Sophie simply couldn't picture herself creating the kind of family she'd never possessed, not even as a human.

BOOM...

The howling wind suddenly intensified.

Watching through the windshield, Sophie noticed the rain being driven sideways in strange, unnatural sheets. Leaning toward the glass, she studied the worsening weather and briefly considered simply carrying the entire sports car back to the treehouse herself.

Then, without warning, a dark figure dropped from the sky.

Whoosh!

It landed directly outside the driver's side window.

Everything had happened too quickly. The rain blurred the glass, preventing Sophie from identifying what had appeared outside.

She was just reaching toward the window controls when the mysterious visitor thoughtfully saved her the trouble.

With a single punch, he shattered the reinforced side window.

The tempered glass exploded into thousands of glittering fragments that scattered across both the inside and outside of the car with a loud crash.

"Where's Jane?"

The blond man in a black cloak frowned as he looked into the vehicle, clearly dissatisfied to find only Sophie staring blankly back at him.

There was only one person in the world arrogant enough to casually destroy Volturi property.

Caius.

"She's at the treehouse. Master Caius, you..."

Sophie was speechless.

She had gone through so much effort, running through the rain just to protect Felix's beloved sports car.

One punch from Caius had undone everything.

With the window now missing, the roar overhead became unmistakably clear.

Sophie recognized it immediately.

Aro's helicopter.

Apparently the repair workshop worked remarkably fast.

Heidi skillfully manipulated the controls, guiding the helicopter into an exceptionally smooth landing.

Felix's sports car had been equipped with a tracking system, which explained how Heidi had located them so quickly.

Looking at the marsh below, Sophie could only marvel.

This swamp was an absolute nightmare of a landing zone.

She could scarcely imagine just how extraordinary Heidi's piloting skills had to be.

"Master Caius..." Sophie blinked in confusion. "Shouldn't you still be waiting in that werewolf village near London..."

Then realization struck.

He had come here personally.

Which meant...

"The Moonheart Grass bloomed!"

Caius snorted proudly.

"So you're not completely hopeless."

Grabbing Sophie effortlessly by the back of her collar, he lifted her clean through the broken window as though she weighed nothing before casually tossing her toward the marsh.

"Go get Jane. Hurry up."

Their considerable height difference made throwing Sophie around almost absurdly convenient for him.

Ecstasy flooded Sophie' heart.

Their wish had come true.

Siobhan's wish-granting miracle had worked!

"So it really is that effective..." she muttered under her breath.

Caius misunderstood entirely, assuming she was praising him.

Naturally pleased with himself, he declared, "That valley's Moonheart Grass rightfully belongs to the Volturi. I harvested more than enough to cure Jane."

"How much did you pick?"

"All of it."

"Not a single blossom left."

That was exactly how Caius handled things.

Meanwhile, the Irish Coven reacted with remarkable speed.

Two unfamiliar vampires had appeared near the edge of their territory, accompanied by a helicopter loud enough to wake the entire countryside. Ignoring such a disturbance was impossible.

At Jane's request, Siobhan carried her across the marsh to investigate personally, while Liam and Maggie remained behind to guard their home.

Sophie gently accepted Jane from Siobhan's arms before expressing her heartfelt thanks. She hurriedly explained that the helicopter had simply come to retrieve them and that the Volturi had no intention of intruding upon Irish territory.

Caius remained cold and aloof, clearly considering the leader of such a remote coven beneath his attention.

Instead, Heidi stepped down from the helicopter and graciously greeted the younger coven leader in his place.

Her Gift of irresistible charm proved equally effective on women.

Before long, Siobhan found herself warming considerably toward the beautiful Volturi guard.

More importantly, the Volturi respected territorial boundaries throughout the encounter.

Not a single one of them crossed into Irish land.

Once Jane had been settled safely aboard the helicopter, Sophie climbed back down one final time to embrace Siobhan goodbye.

"Siobhan... thank you so much."

"You're practically a miracle worker!"

Siobhan laughed helplessly.

Even now, she refused to accept the credit.

"I merely sat beneath a wooden house and imagined a happy ending," she replied with a smile. "The real credit belongs to the Volturi. Still..." Her gaze softened as she looked toward Jane. "I'm truly happy your Jane is finally going to recover."

She placed particular emphasis on your Jane.

"I hope everything goes well for you, Sophie. We'll always be friends."

That very night, Sophie and Jane returned to Volterra.

Felix's unfortunate sports car made the journey suspended beneath the helicopter all the way back to the Palazzo dei Priori.

The shattered glass had scratched the paintwork, while the interior had suffered considerable damage as well.

The losses were substantial.

Sophie apologized to Felix over and over again, despite everyone knowing perfectly well that the real culprit was Caius.

As a result, Felix's beloved sports car took over the helicopter's place at the repair workshop, where it would undergo extensive repairs.

Without anyone saying it aloud, they all quietly reached the same conclusion.

From now on...

It would be best to keep Caius as far away from modern transportation as possible.

As for the repair bill?

Alec quietly paid for everything himself.