Embry's POV

Chief Lyons came into the home, my mom had wiped her tears away and offered him a seat at our table. Jacob said his goodbyes and left the house, giving me one last glance before shutting the door. The chief asked me to have a seat with him, I sat across our tables, my mom perched on the arm of the couch a few feet away.

"So Embry? Where have you been the last few days? You're mom has been worried."

The chief was so typical, I had dealt with him so many times, he always started with that question. Where have you been? What were you doing? Why not call? I knew his whole script. I hadn't seen him in a while, I had been working hard to get my mom to trust me again, but now that was all out the window.

"I was with my friends," the classic answer I always gave. This was true, it always was. I was with Jacob, Quil, Seth, Leah... and the Cullens.

"Which friends," he pulled out his pad.

"Jacob Black."

"Anyone else."

"Mostly him."

"What were you and Jacob Black doing?"

"Just hanging out."

"You were at Prom in Forks I heard?"

"Yeah," I clenched my fists under the table.

"So you know about the incident that occurred."

"Yeah."

"What happened?," the chief leaned back in the chair.

"Nothing. I heard some girl scream in the bathroom, I went in, she was on the floor."

"Who was she?"

"I don't know."

"Did anyone else hear this scream?"

I shrugged," If they did, they didn't do anything."

"Dr. Cullen mentioned you were doing CPR when he came in."

"Yeah," I shifted in the chair. This is so stupid.

"Embry!," my mom exclaimed from her spot.

"He said that you helped save that girl's life," the chief smiled. "Embry, I know you're a good kid," he put his notepad away. "You didn't hurt that girl, you helped her."

"Of course I didn't hurt her."

"Of course not," my mother defended me. "He saved her. Oh god, no one told me you did CPR,: she covered her mouth with both hands, almost like she was in shock.

"Well, her name is April Ladmann. She was released from the hospital today, she had concussion."

"How did she have concussion and need CPR?," my mom interrupted.

Chief Lyon chuckled," I'm no doctor. But her parents wanted me to extend a thank you," he stood up and extended a hand. "You, Embry Call, are a hero."

"Uh... thanks?," I shook his hand.

"You take care and make sure to call your mom when you leave. Let her know where you are, Embry. "

"Sure thing," I agreed as he went to the door.

"Thanks so much for coming by," my mom shook the chiefs hand. "I'm just glad this whole thing is cleared up."

"Me too," the chief left and my mom shut the door.

"Embry?," she called but I was already in my room with the door shut.

I threw my bag on the floor hard and felt the strong urge to punch the wall, but closed my eyes and took a deep breath. I need to focus. I have to break that stupid alpha law.

Raena's POV

My mom wasn't at the hotel again, I called my mom first, I had so many questions that only she could answer. I needed to know why she left this place, took me away and never told me the truth about it all. Since she didn't answer, I was ready to call the Sheriff's office now, I needed to talk to my uncle, tell him everything so he could get me out of here. The line rang and rang and rang, but no one answered. Is that even possible? Aren't police stations supposed to be open all the time? I tried every number I could remotely think of to reach Charlie's, I even called that stupid diner he loves do much, but no one answered. Maybe there's a storm or something and the lines are down? Why can't I reach anyone?

I was looking in the yellow pages for my mom when Kalem knocked on the door of the study," Hey," he stuck his head in.

"Hey," I wiped my eyes before any tears could form.

"Sorry about dinner," he apologized. "Family's a little crazy."

I let out a small laugh." Most families are."

"Dad's just... a little high strung," he came and sat on one of the green couches. "I think he has this idea in his head that now that we're all together, everything was supposed to be perfect. Like finally, he was going to be happy."

I shrugged," You guys seem pretty happy here."

"Yeah, we are... but usually I don't see dad. He's gone for days or weeks at a time, doing all sorts of stuff. Meetings, coven circles, and," he glanced to me," well, looking for you."

"I can't believe he was looking for me..." I sighed into the desk chair.

"Did you never think to look for your dad?"

"No," I admitted. "I figured he didn't give a shit about my mom or me, so I didn't give a shit about him."

Kalem nodded," Well, now you know that's not true."

"Yeah, it's weird. I don't really know how to handle this whole thing," I felt a little better able to talk to someone that wasn't Cassia.

"I wouldn't either," Kalem laughed.

"Do... Do you think they'll ever let me leave?"

I asked the question and the room went quiet. Right now I was in a delicate balance between keeping my new family happy but also trying to get away from and by asking that question, I was scared I had tipped the scales.

Kalem turned to me," You really think you're a prisoner here, don't you?"

"Wouldn't you?," I asked. "Everytime I ask to go home, they just push it off with some bullshit excuse. I can't get a hold of anyone. You guys don't have any TVs so I can't even check the news to see what is happening. If they think I ran away or that... I'm dead or something."

Kalem stood up and sat in the chair across from me on the other side of the desk. "Raena," he sounded like he had something important to tell me, so I held my breath. "You're not a prisoner here."

I let go of my breath," Easy for you to say. You want to be here."

"And you don't?"

"No," I said loudly.

"That's bullshit," Kalem scoffed.

"What?"

"I said that's bullshit. Dad finds you huddled on the edge of the country in some small whatever town with werewolves and vampires, so happy to have found his long lost first child, brings you here and you don't care. We tell you, we're your family, that you have brothers and sisters, still you don't care. Then we get to show you magic, that we're witches and that you are a witch too, but you don't believe us. You think we're some sort of weird cult, and all you care about are the people who haven't even reported you as missing? It's just so stupid," Kalem took a second to collect himself while I sat there too stunned to really say anything.

Kalem stood up and crossed the room to the large photo of Adrian and opened the secret door," Come on," he said sounding irritated.

"What? Why? You're going to lock me in that room again?"

"Was that door ever locked?," he rolled his eyes.

"That place is huge, no way I'm going down there."

"Unlike you, I practice magic and I can find my way. Now, come on," he waved his arm.

How about hell no, I stayed in my chair.

Kalem sighed," Veni," he called and I felt myself being pulled toward him.

"Wait! Wait, no! Stop!," I tried to resist, but I was already halfway across the room. "No, stop. Just stop! I'll come! I'll come, just stop this," I begged as I landed at his feet.

"Okay," he waved his hand over me. "Then let's go," he took the dark gloomy stairs down into the dungeon like basement.

Fuck...

I took a cautious step, it was hard to see, the sconces were dim and I really did not want to fall.

"Lucidus," Kalem called and the lights brightened all around me. I stopped clinging to the wall and followed him down the steps.

"Hey," I caught his attention and he turned. "Don't ever do that fucking shit to me again."

He might be some magic kid, but I was not going to let him control me.

He nodded,"Okay. I won't."

"Now, why am I here?," I asked peeking up at the top of the stairs, wanting to go back.

"You need to see something," he told me.

"Rector imagini prodavus," he spoke in a deep clear voice and extended his arm with his palm facing straight ahead into the long hallway. It took a second, but then a small funnel of swirling red light came from his hand. It looked like a sparkly red snake that spiraled out and slithered down the hall through the air. It was bright, and really quick, I watched it race down the hall and dart around a corner in the distance. Kalem turned to me," Now we follow it," he started walking. As he passed through the red path, it disappeared; so as we walked it was in front of us, but nothing was behind us.

"Woah," I couldn't help it from escaping my mouth. "What... What is it?," I resisted the urge to reach out and stroke the bright light as we followed it.

Kalem chuckled," What else but magic?"

"Kalem, where are we going?"

"Don't worry, we should be close."

"I'm really getting sick of being pushed around by everyone here," I told him through gritted teeth.

"You really are out spoken," Kalem mumbled.

"Oh, sorry I'm not some little flower girl you all can corrupt."

"Corrupt? Who is trying to corrupt you? Avia and pater just want to get to know you and spend time with you? Is that so bad, really? To get to know your family?"

"It is when it's forced on me one night. I get no say in what I want and am hidden away across the country."

"So you don't want to know us?," he stopped and looked at me.

"That's not what I said."

"Pretty much," he grumbled and continued. "Look, we made it, but not that you'll care."

The red light ended in the middle of the hall, there were no ways to turn, no doors, not anything, it just sat there suspended in the air.

"Where are we?," I tried to look for something, but the hall was empty.

Kalem went to the left side of the hall and place his hand on the stone," Apertum," he demanded and then stepped back.

Right before my eyes, the wall shifted, pulling apart as if two hands were stretching it like clay. An Arch formed, exposing a room behind it, Kalem stepped in and I quickly followed. The room was huge, so tall, I couldn't really see the ceiling. It was an oval shaped room, with a large fireplace, taller than me on the opposite side. There was a large rug in front of the fireplace with two couches on either side. The really crazy part of this room was the wall, the were lined with photos, there was almost no room for any more it was so full. The pictures ranged from bigger than myself to smaller than my head, as they were clustered and fit like a puzzle together on the wall.

"Woah," I let it slip again, as I spun to see them all.

I noticed to the left of the fireplace, it was familiar, like I had seen it before. I went across the room to get a better look, Kalem following me. It was Adrian, the same painted photo that was upstairs. Now that I was closer, I saw there was some space between the photos and they were all linked up with lines on the wall. Adrian's was connect to the two above him, it was hard to see since his picture was so big, but it looked like Cassia, a younger version, but still her.

"Take my hand," Kalem instructed.

"What?"

"Come on," he shook it next to my hand. I wrapped my hand around his and hear him mumble," Surge sursus." Then I felt us move, my feet weren't touching the ground. I grasped his hand tighter and reached out for the all to steady myself. "It's okay, just relax," Kalem instructed. "Desino."

We stopped and I was afraid to look down and see myself off the ground.

"It's Avia," Kalem said looking at the photo.

He was right, and so was I. We were now in front of the photo I had been looking at, it was Cassia. She was younger, and so beautiful, she was smiling and looked happy sitting on a chair. I saw that she was connected to multiple paintings, Adrian below her, pictures above her and one beside her. He was a man with a large mustache and dark clothes. He looked stern and he was not smiling in his picture where he was simply standing while holding his hat.

"That's Avus," Kalem say me staring.

"Avus?," I repeated.

"Well, not his real name, it was Macairo."

"So that's our grandpa?"

"Yeah, well, he died a while ago."

"Oh...," was all I could say. "So this place... it's like what? Photos of the whole family."

"Yeah, it's basically a huge family tree," Kalem looked around the room. "Humilis." Both of us gently floated to the floor which I was a little sad about. I felt so different floating in the air, it was kind of amazing. Kalem squatted down, "When a witch leaves the coven, their picture is burned to symbolize they are dead to us, like when witches used to burn in Europe as punishment for treachery."

I looked around the room," I don't see any?"

"Exactly. It hasn't happened in over 300 years since a witch has left the coven, if you want, I can take you up..."

"Really?"

"Sure, but first," he beckoned me below Adrian's picture.

I saw three women and then below them were three baby photos.

"That's me," he pointed at the photo second from the left. That's Val and Emelie." He followed the pictures to the right.

Kalem's picture was connected to the woman above him, she has light brown long hair and was smiling. Next to her and connected to Valerian was a blonde woman with a short pixie style haircut, she was smiling too. Last was another blonde woman with long elegant curls who sat with a blank expression, she was connected to Emelie's photo

"Wait... you all have different moms?," I asked. I was never introduced to their mom, I just assumed they all had the same one.

"Yeah, it's not really common," Kalem admitted. "Usually marriages last a lifetime, so pater was really broken when your mom left, so when he decided to have more kids, he wanted it to be spread out... just in case," Kalem ended softly.

Beside Kalem's photo was another baby, I knew who it was. "That's me, isn't it?," I pointed to the photo on the far left.

"Yeah," he nodded.

My picture had a direct line to Adrian, there was no picture of my mother.

"Why isn't my mom on here?"

"She wasn't a witch, only blood witches are framed," Kalem explained, then he added "Dad could never take your photo down, even when the council suggested it was time. He never gave up. He fought for as long as I can remember to get you back and... now that you're finally here, I think it's breaking his heart to see you fight so hard to leave."

Damn...

I stood up from where we were squatting," It's kind of weird to think people I've just met cared about me so much before I even knew they existed," I folded my arms and looked over the wall of pictures.

"They still care," Kalem told me.

"So do the people I left behind," I told him.

"Your mom lives in Chicago but you live in Washington with your uncle?," Kalem was not convinced.

"That's not the whole story."

"They haven't even reported you missing," Kalem told me.

"Because they're trying to find me," I told him.

"So you're making your choice without even giving us a chance?"

Fuck, this is not how this is supposed to be.

I couldn't really come up with something to say to him.

"I wanted to show you this, I wanted you to see that we never gave up. Pater talked about you almost everyday: his lost but never forgotten daughter."

I felt too emotional, I felt like I was going to cry, I didn't want to.

"I'm sorry," was all I could say as I wiped the tear from my eye

"Don't cry, that's not what I wanted," Kalem said uncomfortably.

"I'm not crying," I lied. "I... I just don't even know what do anymore."

It's easier when you were all the villains.

Kalem sighed," I know what you mean. I know I'm a little biased," he joked," but I think you should stay, not forever, but just a while. Get to know our family, see our traditions and just give us a chance before you go back to your old life and in 10 years regret throwing us out."

And just leave everyone else... not that there are that many people that care about me out there. My mom maybe, Uncle Charlie and Embry. I can't just leave them in the cold, I have to least tell them I'm okay.

"Come on," Kalem guided me out of the room. "I'll take you back to your room. Rector Domus," he held out his hand and the red sparkly snaked out and showed us the way back to the door. Kalem got me back into the study, it was dark now, like the house had gone to bed. "Just a warning, I think dad invited people over for dinner tomorrow night."

I nodded," Thanks."

He gave me a head nod and left the room silently. I looked to the computer and made my way over, dialing all the numbers again, but getting no signal. What am I going to do? Should I really stay here? Become a witch? Whatever that means... They are my family. They want me to stay here, spend time with them, get to know them all... How long would that take? I've never really had a grandmother, I thought about Cassia. Or a dad for that matter... or siblings. How do I act? What do I say? I hung up the phone and went past the front door, it was another opportunity to run, but where would I go? I have no money... no idea how to get anywhere. No real idea where I am. I slowly walked past the front door and up the stairs to my room, I walked in, it was dark and empty. I decided to take a shower, it was nice but I couldn't stop my thoughts from running. I didn't know what to do or how I was supposed to do it. I laid in my new bed, in my new room, in my new house and couldn't fall asleep.

Charlie POV

It was getting late, almost 9 and no call from Bella or Raena. I took out my cell and called Ranea's phone, but the operator said the phone had been disconnected. Diane probably didn't pay the bill, I thought turning my attention back to the golf competition rerun. Then I called Bella's number, she answered.

"Hey dad."

"Hey Bells. Do I need to come pick Raena up?"

"No, dad. Actually she fell asleep already. Alice and I took her into the city earlier, she was exhausted. Sorry, I forgot to call."

"She has to go to school tomorrow," I told her.

"I know, I can take her," Bella replied

"All her school stuff is here."

"We'll stop by in the morning."

"Does she think I'm going to be harsh on her?," I asked," For the drinking? Because she still is not off the hook."

Bella waited a moment," I think she might be a little scared."

"Well, she can't avoid me forever. Does she have her homework done for tomorrow?"

"They don't assign homework over Prom weekend, Dad."

"Probably the smart thing to do," I grumbled. "Well, when you take her tomorrow, tell her I'll be picking her up in the same spot."

"Okay, no problem."

"Oh.. and tell her that I'm proud. She did the right thing, she called someone when she was too drunk."

"I will dad," I could hear Bella smile.

"Okay," I slapped my knees and stood up. "Talk to you later, Love you."

"Love you too."

I hung up, "Guess I can go to bed now," I said to myself while stretching then went up to my room. It wasn't often I got the house to myself, Sue was staying at her place for the night, she felt like she was missing out on her kids. I got dressed and fell asleep as soon as my head hit the pillow.