CHAPTER EIGHT
All chatter in the room came to a screeching halt. Jacob cleared his throat. "Of course you did."
Eila came in the door then. "What did I miss?" she asked, concerned by the silence. Nessie walked to her and started explaining quietly.
I looked down at Marah, and saw that her eyes were wide open, and looking in the direction of Cade. I felt her childhood being stolen from me in that instant, but it was bittersweet. I knew that she would always be happy, and what more could I ask for? I hadn't even known this little girl for twelve hours yet, but Cade would give her something that I never could. He could give her what Nick gave me, and I had never been more thankful for him than in that moment.
"Well," I said, finally breaking the silence. "Come here Cade."
He came to me, and fell to his knees in front of me. He was staring at Marah like she was the only thing in the world, and although some part of her was taken from me in that moment, I knew he was giving her so much more. "Do you want to hold her?" I asked.
"Yes," Cade said.
Nick stood up from where he was sitting next to me. "Sit," he said to Cade. "I'm freaking out."
Cade ripped his eyes off of Marah, and looked at Nick. "Sorry," he said.
"Don't be," Nick said. "But sit. I'm scared you'll drop her."
"Never," Cade said, but he took a seat anyway.
I kissed Marah's forehead, and slowly slid her limp form into Cade's waiting arms.
Her little lips smiled, and Cade grinned. She yawned and closed her eyes, tucked into his warm flesh.
Nick was standing by my father now. "I know I told you you'd never understand," my father said. "But I think you do now."
Nick nodded. "I do."
Cade smiled, and looked at his dad. "A lot makes sense now," he said.
Jacob smiled at his son. "I'm glad," he said.
"Alright," Brady said from the corner of the room. "Who else saw this coming?" Everyone looked at him. "Just me?" he said. "Alright then."
Everyone started laughing. "No really," he said a minute later. "Remember how he knocked Zemati out of the way on Thanksgiving?"
"Ha," Cade said. "That really makes more sense now."
Our house phone rang, and Selena answered it. Everyone was talking now, and I was watching Cade hold Marah. "Zemati," Selena said. "It's Jenny."
"Hey Jen," I said, taking the phone from her as she gave it to me. "You're alive!"
"Yes," Jenny said. "But it was looking pretty questionable for a while there."
I laughed. "I know the feeling. That was terrible."
"Totally," Jenny said. I heard a small baby crying from somewhere near here, and I heard Liam shushing what must have been Grant. "Anyway," she said. "We just sent the last of our family in your direction. And as sore and exhausted as I am, I want to meet that baby of yours. It was a girl?"
"Yes," I said. "Marah."
"Gorgeous," she said. She chuckled. "So I don't know how well this is going to go, but can we stop by?"
"Sure," I said. "If you think you can make it."
"Ha," she said. "It'll be interesting to say at the least."
So it was that way that my entire family ended up squeezed into all the corners of our house. Sue and Charlie even brought Billy over. They were getting on in years, but definitely still kicking. People started to leave around nine o'clock. It was Saturday, so no one had school or work, but they had things to do. Jenny fell sound asleep on Liam's shoulder exactly twenty minutes after meeting Marah. Claire was still awake, but she looked pretty tired as well. Jayna and Jason were extremely fascinated with Christine, and Quil had to keep reminding them to be gentle.
I have no memory of the house emptying. I woke up in bed what seemed like minutes after I had noticed that Jenny was asleep, but after checking the clock on the night table, I realized it was nearly noon. Nick was sitting on the bed, rocking a crying Marah. "Hush," he told her, holding him to his chest. He kissed her on the forehead. "Daddy loves you," he said.
My heart melted. Her crying quieted slightly, but she wouldn't be distracted for long. Nick looked over his shoulder at me as I stiffly rolled over. "Hey there," he said over her cries.
"Hi," I said, wincing as I felt my sore middle. I looked down, and realized that I was covered in a damp film from my chest down to my waist. I laughed in shock. "I guess my milk came in."
"You're what?" he said.
"My milk," I said. "For breastfeeding."
"I didn't know you could do that," he said, sounding very surprised.
I laughed. "Nessie didn't either until Eila was born. It's not really milk. It's like a combination of milk and blood I guess."
"Huh," Nick said, rocking a still quietly crying Marah.
"Maybe she's hungry," I suggested. "I could try to nurse her…"
"You know how to do that?" he asked, sounding amazed.
I laughed. "I guess I'm going to figure it out. Help me up would you?"
Nick walked around to my side of the bed, still holding Marah. He gently helped me sit up, and I stretched out my sore muscles. "You going to make it?" he asked as I winced.
"Likely," I said.
I grabbed his pillow and sat it on my lap. I pulled my shirt off, and saw how swollen my breasts looked. They ached a little to be honest. Nick handed me Marah, and slid around behind me. He straddled me from behind, just like he had when I was giving birth.
I put Marah to my chest, and her little mouth tried to find the source of her nourishment. Nick put his arms around me, and gently guided my left breast into her mouth. She latched on, and immediately started sucking. It was the most natural thing in the world for me. I smiled, breathless. "This has got to me the most amazing thing I have ever done," I said.
"It's the most beautiful thing I've ever watched," he told me. He kissed my cheek, and stroked Marah's hair as she ate.
Her childhood was going to be fast. I would never get as much time with her as I wanted, but that was alright. She was going to be beautiful. She was going to be perfect. She was going to be ours. I looked into Nick's eyes, and knew that he was thinking the same thing.
"I'm always going to be in love with you," he told me. "I fall more and more in love every single day.
I smiled. "I'm always going to be in love with you too," I said.
If nothing else remained, our love would be. And there was nothing that was ever going to be better or stronger than that.
We laid Marah back down in her bassinette after I finished nursing her, but the two of us decided to stay up. It was about twelve thirty at this point, and we would want to be able to fall asleep tonight. The nap had been well deserved, but now it was time we settled back into a new normal with our beautiful little Marah.
I was sore, but it was manageable. I noticed that my unchanging body had snapped itself right back into where it was before. Whatever traces of a baby bump I had after giving birth were long gone now. Nick went to make himself lunch, and I told him I was going to take a shower. Marah seemed content in her bassinette, but I knew I would be hurrying through the shower to go check on her. Nick would take care of her.
I enjoyed taking a shower and seeing how good my body looked again. It was beautiful while I was pregnant, but that was a different kind of beauty. I looked straight up sexy now. I laughed at myself. I washed all of my long hair out, and combed it with the comb I left in the shower. I used some scented soap, and towel dried myself off after I got out. I wrapped myself in the towel and walked back to our room.
Nick was sitting on the bed, eating a sandwich, watching Marah sleep.
"Enthralled?" I said quietly, hoping not to wake her.
"Completely," he said. He looked at me all wet, wrapped up in my blue towel. "Although," he said. "You're awfully nice to look at too."
"Oh hush," I said, batting my hand at him with a smile. Once inside our closet, I picked out an outfit that would hug my newly-small body again. Just a dark gray t-shirt and some jeans, but I knew I would rock it. "So how did you finally get Cade to go home?" I asked Nick.
He chuckled. "Well," he said. "I actually didn't. He was here until about two hours ago, but he had patrol. He should be back any minute though. There is no way we are keeping that boy out of here for very long."
He had finished his sandwich by this point, so I came and sat on his lap.
We both looked at Marah, and then at each other.
"Hi there," he said to me, kissing me on the cheek.
"Hello," I said. I turned to kiss him, and I felt how close he could hold me now. I kicked my right leg over the top of him so that I was straddling him. His hands were already greedily grabbing my sides, pulling me closer to him. He wrapped his arm around me tight, so that even I couldn't get free. My wet hair was hanging over his arms, and I played with his hair while he pressed his lips to mine, sealing them shut.
I pulled away first. "Nick," I said, him swallowing the word with his lips before I could even protest. He opened his mouth, pulling mine open with his. Our tongues danced, but I could feel Marah right behind us. "Nick," I said, really pulling away this time. "Our daughter is right here."
He smiled, and he pulled me close. I supposed a hug was okay. "I am so proud of you," Nick said to me.
"What for?" I asked, smelling his soap and absolutely loving it.
"You delivered the most beautiful baby girl. That is something I could never do."
"Mm," I said. "It's what my body was built to do you see."
"No," Nick said. "Even if I could physically have a child, there is no way I am that tough. You were so strong. You just kept going, even when I thought you would have to give up."
I chuckled. "There was no giving up. She was coming out of me whether I was ready or not."
Nick laughed. "I suppose so, but that was still quite impressive. You were only in labor for thirty-five minutes. You beat Nessie's record."
I laughed. "Those thirty-five minutes just about killed me."
He rubbed my back. "I felt so helpless."
I kissed his cheek. "You were," I said. "But you did everything you could. I really couldn't have done that without you."
I climbed off of him, and he helped me turn over so that I was sitting on his lap again. "Look at her," I said, smiling at our sleeping daughter.
Her little body was swallowed by the bassinette. She was flat on her back with her hands above her; her little hands curled into fists. Her face was turned toward us, so we could see her content little smile.
We couldn't stay there forever. We left the door to our room open so we would hear if she woke up or started crying. Cade came back after running patrol, and I did my best to make him feel at home. He had known me my entire life. It only freaked me out a little bit that my daughter had been imprinted on by someone who was technically a little bit older than me.
"How did it go?" I asked him.
"As good as can be expected," he said, and I noticed that he was already taller than me; still going up. "I got a little lost, but I managed. I was out there with Bryce, and he was really good to talk to believe it or not."
I laughed. "I'm sure he was." It might have been a little awkward that Bryce had imprinted on Cade's sister, but he would know exactly how Cade was feeling. I heard Marah's breathing get a little bit faster, but she didn't cry. Nick heard the same thing, and walked into our room. He came out carrying her a second later. She had her head on his shoulder, but her eyes were wide open.
"Well hey there pretty girl," I said. She didn't respond to my words in anyway, but her blue eyes met mine. I chuckled. "She definitely has your eyes," I said to Nick.
"Yes," he said. "And that might be all. But I am perfectly okay with that. God knows I wanted her to look like you even if she was a boy."
I chuckled. "Hey now," I said. "It took two people to make her. I'll bet we find more and more ways she looks like you or acts like you as time goes on."
"Likely," Nick said.
Cade was smiling at Marah. Her little lips smiled at him as well, and I was only a little jealous. Nick handed Marah to me when I reached for her, and I put her on my lap so she would face Cade. Her little body fit right into mine, and I realized that twenty-four hours ago she was in the same position, only her head was facing down, and she was inside of me.
"Hey," I said. "She was inside of me like this twenty-four hours ago."
"Wow," Nick said. "Now I'm even more impressed."
Cade turned to me. "When was the last time you hunted?" he asked.
I gave that a thought. "A while ago," I said. "I felt so massive towards the end of that pregnancy I didn't feel like doing anything. How about you?"
"It's been eight days," he said.
"You're overdue," I told him. I looked at Marah, and though she was growing quickly, she was still so small. I sighed. "And so am I. And this little girl could probably get some use out of some straight blood."
"Well," Cade said. "We can all go together. Someone could always hold her, keep her out of the way I suppose."
"This is true," I said. I shook my head. "Jeez your mom is a beast. She had to hunt for Eila all by herself."
Cade laughed. "She told me once that she just kind of held her away from the flailing animal and killed it with her other hand." He laughed again. "When I was born, she left Eila holding me in the middle of the woods and hauled back an animal for the two of us."
"Wow," I said. "She's got nerve, your mother."
Cade shook his head. "Aw man," he said. "I've got school tomorrow."
"Yuck," I agreed. "But hey," I said. "There's lots of pack member still in school."
Cade shrugged. "Yeah," he said. "And they're making it work."
"We won't let you fall behind," Nick asked. "When is your next patrol?"
"Eight to ten tomorrow night."
"Really?" Nick said. "You're with me. That's a good shift. You get to eat dinner, but you're back before bedtime."
Cade nodded. "Yeah," he said. Marah cooed in my arms, and both Cade and Nick smiled at her.
"So you want to go tonight?" I asked him.
"Yeah," Cade said. "Definitely."
Cade, Marah, and I ran over to his house around dusk. It was pretty cold, and though I could feel how warm Marah was, I still put a coat and hat on her. I didn't want her getting sick or anything. Then again, I didn't think it was in her nature…
Cade held Marah first while I hunted, and then Eila held her when she finished. I was enjoying how free I felt without Marah inside of me, and I was thirstier than I originally thought. Nessie hadn't been hunting in a while either, and both the kids were done before we were. We finished up after only about an hour though.
I heard the running footsteps suddenly, and for one second I thought it was my family. Nessie and I both looked at each other at the same time, and the wind blew in our direction.
They were vampires, and they were most definitely not my family.
Nessie and I jumped in front of the kids, and I was grateful when I noticed that Eila was still holding Marah. They both heard the footsteps now, and Cade took some steps away from his sister. He was shaking, but looked like he was holding it together pretty well. He had a good head on his shoulders at least…
I heard the wolf feet then, and I heard as a howl went up. The rest of the wolves would be here soon, no matter what these vampires wanted. "Stay behind me Eila, protect that baby," Nessie said.
The footsteps got closer, and suddenly I could see them.
There were four of them, looking exactly the way vampires should. Their eyes were black, and I wasn't sure if that made me feel better or worse. These vampires were very pale, but they had a slightly tan tint to their skin, as if they had spent a lot of time in the sun as humans. There was one male who had black hair, and was about five inches taller than me. The other male was about six feet tall, with hair that was streaked with light and dark brown hair. The two females were small, and gorgeous. The one had hair as black as the first male, and was easily an inch shorter than me. The other female was about my height, with hair that was light brown and streaked with flecks of blond. She looked like a classic southern Californian, but the blond in her hair was a little too dark.
"We come in peace," the male with black hair said. He looked like he was about twenty years old, but looks could be deceiving. The wolves were circling us now, and I could see how confused they looked. I spotted Nick, and was relieved by that fact alone. "My name is William," he said. "And I know that you don't believe me, but we aren't here to hurt you."
"I believe you," Nessie said. "But I'm sure you can see why we are so nervous." She gestured behind her, and looked at the other three vampires. They stood in relaxed positions, looking as nervous as I felt. If there was a fight, they would lose, and they knew it. "What can I help you with?" Nessie asked.
"Well," William said. "If you don't mind me asking… What are you exactly?"
Nessie cocked her head at him and smiled. "You don't know?" she asked.
"No," he said.
"Well," she said. "Have you ever heard of the Cullen family?"
"I think so," the taller female said. "But only in passing. My name is Hazel by the way."
"Do explain," William said, and I could see how enthralled he was.
Nessie spoke quickly, explaining who her family was, explaining who she was, explaining who her kids were. Then she explained who I was, and who Marah was. She also explained about the wolves. She spoke fast, but it still took her a good ten minutes to get everything out. The four vampires looked stunned.
"Your story…" The tall, lighter-haired one said. "It is so… amazing. I am Oscar by the way. But they call me Oz."
"Like the wizard?" I joked, finally speaking up.
"Exactly like the wizard," he said.
"I am June," the short, dark –hair one said, but she looked very shy. She kind of hisd behind the dark haired male, and I could tell that they were mates. The other two appeared to be the same way. It was just in the way they stood.
"Anyway," William said. "Now that the formalities are over, I do have to admit that we have been sticking around here for quite some time. We are semi-nomadic vampires, and we were just passing through. But we saw you all out here hunting, and we were amazed. I was so curious, especially, since you, Zemati, appeared to be pregnant." Nessie had already told him our names.
I smiled. "Well until early this morning," I said. "I was pregnant."
"Well look at you go," Hazel said. "You just bounce right back, don't you?"
I laughed. "Yes, something like that."
"I was wondering…" William said. "And we have talked about this… How do you become a 'vegetarian' vampire?"
Nessie chuckled. "Well," she said. "We were born into it actually. But Zemati's parents were not. They live just across town. I'm sure they would be willing to meet you and talk to you about it if you're serious."
William nodded his head slowly, and I could see the age in his eyes. "You see," he said. "We are a very strange case. The four of us were born in Texas in 1918. We went to grammar school together, and were all engaged to be married a week after Oz and I finished attending college. But, like so many others, we were in the wrong place, at the wrong time. We passed a small vampire coven while on a walk late one night, and I'm sure you can guess what happened. The vampire coven bit us with the intention of turning us, not killing us. We do not know why they did that to this day. Our intention has to make sure we do not damn other human beings to this lifestyle, but sometimes we mess up. Distractions come, we have to leave, and three days later, they are just like us," he said. He shook his head. "There is so much killing," he said. "It really takes a toll on a man's conscience."
Nessie nodded. "I'm sure it does," she said. She seemed to think for a little while. "So…" Nessie said. "You loved each other even in mortality."
"Yes," they all four said at the same time, and I giggled a little.
"So like I said," William said. "We are a very strange case."
"You are," Nessie said. "If you'll let us take the kids home first," she said. "Zemati's family would love to meet you. If you're serious about being vegetarians, welcome to the family." She smiled. "You have support in more places than you know."
William looked at the others in his group, and the shy little dark-haired one, June, spoke up. "We're serious," she said. "Or at least I am." She looked at the ground. "A decade ago, I found some of my great-great nieces and nephews. The one girl looked just like my little sister did. Since then, I have never been okay with killing these humans. Everyone has a family. Everyone will be missed by someone."
"That is exactly true," I said. "And that is what I remind myself of every time I think of how much easier killing humans would be."
"Speak of the devil," Nessie said. I followed the direction of her gaze. My family was slowly materializing out of the woods.
William, June, Oz, and Hazel turned to look at the Dapolis as they were approaching. I took the time to give the introductions, and my family started talking with these nomads. I turned to Nessie. "Should we bring the kids home?"
"I was thinking the same thing," she said. She caught Kahini's attention, and told her we were doing. The wolves had phased back at this point, but they were remaining in the shadows mostly.
Cade was holding Marah, and she was sleeping peacefully now. She had been fed, and was completely oblivious to the events around her. "Are you staying at my house tonight?" I asked Cade.
He shook his head. "As much as I'd like to, I have school in the morning, and it'll be a weird day without starting it at someone else's house."
"That's very responsible," I said. "But you know you are welcome anytime. Maybe after you get the hang of things you'll be able to stay over on school nights."
"You know we understand if you want to," Nessie told him.
Cade nodded. "Mom," he said. "We have the best family in the entire world."
She laughed, and we all joined in with him. Nick, Bryce, and Jacob were walking up to us at this point. "We do," she said.
"Way to keep your cool Cade," Jacob said. "I thought you were going to lose it for sure."
Cade scoffed. "Thanks for the confidence Dad." He shrugged his shoulders. "I just figured it would be more reasonable to look as much like a vampire as possible. It made more sense."
"I suppose you're right," Jacob said.
"Having the ability to reason under pressure is a fantastic skill to have," Nick commented.
"You would know, Mr. 911 operator," Cade replied.
It was late that night when our phone rang. I was already in bed, but Nick was still up reading the newspaper. "Hello?" I heard him answer.
I could hear the loud voices on the other line. "Entirely by coincidence," I heard my mother say. "The Cullens are here! After hearing about Marah, they decided they didn't want to wait any longer. Plus, they just recently decided that they are going to be moving to a town called Douglas, in British Colombia. They are going to be house hunting for two weeks, and then moving up there as soon as they find a place that is secluded enough!"
"Really?" I heard Nick say. "That's great! Does Nessie know?"
My mother laughed. "Well they scared her half to death by showing up at her door about an hour ago. She told them they missed all the action, and after they told her about their plans to move, she sent them over here to meet our new family members."
I climbed out of bed so I could talk to my mother. Nick handed me the phone as I walked up, telling my mother goodnight. "So are they going to do it?" I asked her.
"They're going to give it a shot," my mother told me. They are going to be staying with us for a while. We are going to claim them as extended family for now, but they may eventually go live with the Denalis, or possibly the Cullens. I know that Julia and Connor as well as Zach and Andrea are considering moving to Europe in the next couple of years. They may end up going with them if they adjust well to this lifestyle. They have the right mindset, that's for sure. Carlisle says he sees the capability in their eyes."
I was smiling from ear to ear. "It's going to be really nice having the Cullens closer," I said. "Nessie has got to be thrilled."
"Oh she is," my mother said. "She has school tomorrow and stuff, but tomorrow after school she and Jake and the kids are coming over to visit some more. You guys should come over too. And if you don't have too much school tomorrow during the day, come over then too!"
I laughed. "Alright," I said. "But Nick has work tomorrow morning. So it may just be me and baby."
"That'll work," my mom said, and I heard the loud laughter in the background.
I told my mother goodnight, and hung up the phone smiling. "Well," I said. "No one does surprises quite like the Cullens."
Nick chuckled, and closed the paper. We shut off the lights as we went to bed, and as we climbed in, I enjoyed how closely I could lay to him. I was so much more comfortable plastered entirely against his body. It was pretty obnoxious. We got a hungry wakeup call around three in the morning, but it was quickly soothed when I nursed her. She was a fast eater, and Nick stayed up with me while I nursed. He liked to sit behind me and hold her up with his hands. He said it made him feel more attached to the situation.
The next morning, Marah dozed on a blanket next to me while I wrote a paper for English, another one for history, and did some math homework. I watched the two newly posted lectures for all of my classes, but the entire school day only took me about three hours. I was crazy fast, and I liked it.
I packed Eila into her hand-me-down car seat, and got a diaper bag packed up. I brought one of the bottles of blood we had gotten on our hunting trip last night, so I should be good.
Marah totally stole the show when I got to my parents' house. The Cullens were all there, and they were excited. They were giving me hugs, and I handed Marah off to Rosalie immediately. She was passed from hand to hand, and given lots of love and attention. She cried when Connor held her, but she was getting hungry. Esme fed her the bottle I brought, and she fell asleep drinking it. It was adorable.
The nomads, or the Texans as we had decided to call them, were still a little unsure of the whole situation. There were a ton of vampires here, and they seemed a little overwhelmed. Hazel talked to me for a few minutes though, asking me about Marah, and Nick, and about just anything. I saw June talking to Andrea, and I was glad to see that she at least seemed comfortable around her. The older Cullens were talking about a million miles a minute with Oz and William, remembering the earlier part of the twentieth century.
"So what are you guys looking for in a house?" I asked no one in particular, the whole room already kind of looking at me because I was holding Marah again.
"A lot of bedrooms," Esme said. "But mostly seclusion. We can make it work if it is in the right location. We can't make it work if it is in the wrong location."
I nodded. "I get that."
"We need lots of room for sexy Saturdays," Andrea said, and I saw the grin on her face.
I gave her a look. "Sexy Saturdays?" I said with an eyebrow raise.
"Yeah," Rosalie said. "Didn't you hear about this?"
"We all have sex every Saturday. All day long," Jasper said.
I knew I looked as astonished as I felt. "Really?" I said. "For real?"
"For real," Bella said. "If we're being honest, we all just got tired of trying to find privacy. Saturdays seemed to be the day for it, so we just named them sexy Saturdays."
"Don't judge," Edward said, holding up his hands.
I laughed. "Hey," I said. "If it works for you, feel free."
I stayed there the whole day. I had to nurse Marah around three o'clock, but I just stepped into my old bedroom. It was currently used as an extra bedroom, and no one bothered me in there. Jacob, Nick, Eila, Nessie, and Cade all came over together around three-fifteen. The Cullens loved Eila and Cade to pieces, and I don't think I had seen Nessie look so ecstatic in my entire life. When Cade and Nick had to go run patrol, I stayed at the house with everyone else.
They came back right on time, and I gave Marah to Cade after Nick held her for a while. I put my head on Nick's broad shoulder, and looked around at everyone around us. We had all congregated in the living room, and I had never felt more content. My baby was surrounded by people who loved her, and in the more than capable arms of someone who would love her for the rest of eternity. I had the man of my dreams sitting next to me, and the family I loved close, and getting closer every day. The rest of forever was looking happier and happier every day. Nick kissed the top of my head.
"I love you," he whispered.
"I love you too," I whispered back.
This was going to be great.
THE END
