~To anyone who left a review about this pandemic and anyone who hasn't said anything about it, but is still being affected by it:

I hope that this story and many others on this site are providing a good and much needed distraction. I truly believe that even though we must be physically distancing ourselves from each other, that we can still support each other through it! Each one of you are in my thoughts and prayers, I'm generally sending good vibes. If you ever wanna talk about it or Twilight, or my stories, just shoot me a PM, I'd love to make new friends! (Even if we speak different languages, I will do my best to understand and communicate effectively!)~

Chapter 35

Bella POV:

On the center of my messy, loved-in bed, I sat criss-cross-applesauce. I had a lot on my mind after Sam had left, I was trying to see how long I could feel him before he was too far away. Our connection grew fainter and fainter as he put more distance between us on his way to work.

I clutched at my chest and at my throbbing mark when I could no longer feel his presence at all. I could still tell that he was alive and well, but I couldn't feel the more specific nuances of Sam anymore. Just then, my phone buzzed, alerting me to a new text message.

I miss it already - S

It seemed that we could feel the connection for the same amount of distance, and could both strongly feel the absence of it.

Can't wait to see you - B

I quickly typed back and nibbled on the fresh fruits that I cut from the tray that was still sitting on the bed in front of me. I closed my eyes, just enjoying the flavors of each bite. My heart was full and warm. For the first time in my life I felt loved and accepted. I felt content. Who knew I would finally come to feel this way while Edward was hunting me alongside another deranged and vengeful vampire?

With that thought, I got up, stretching out, and groaning at the delicious soreness I felt. I cleaned up my mess and got ready for the day. It was time for us to be staying at Sam's as we had agreed to do before. It was Jacob's day today to 'babysit' me.

I wondered if Angela would come with him. I hoped that she would. I need some more relatively private time with her to hash out any bitterness that was left between us. I had tried to ignore it and just move on without bringing it all up, but the tension that was between us the other day just proved that ignoring the problem hadn't helped.

If I was honest with myself, I really wasn't angry or upset with her anymore. Instead I just felt a strange, but strong sense of loyalty to her and Jake. I thought that it must be another effect of the mating mark.

I decided then that it may be a smart idea to keep a written account of everything that seemed to be a direct result of the mark. Especially since we were the first marked couple in this generation of wolves. I quickly jotted down everything that was different so far.

Once that was done, and my dishes were cleaned up, and my bags were packed, I left, locking the door behind me. I hopped in my car and made my way to Sam's place. I decided that it was a good time to give Charlie a call. It had been too long since I'd last spoken with my dad.

"Hello?" He answered on the third ring, sounding a little bit stressed.

"Hey dad, it's me." I made a left into Sam's driveway, but just stayed seated in my car once I had parked. "What's up? You sound tired."

"Oh, hey there kiddo. Just crazy times at work these days. There seems to be people going missing left and right in Seattle and now Port Angeles too. They're calling on local forces in surrounding areas now too." Charlie sighed, his gruff voice was heavy with stress and worry. "Anyways, how are you feeling?"

"I'm doing much better. I think being around… friends is helping a lot." I told him, unable to tell him that I had vampire venom in my veins that made me horribly weak and ill if I didn't have the antidote. Also, the antidote was shape-shifting werewolves, which I was soon to be the alpha female of. That wouldn't go over so well.

"That's good to hear, Bells. I've got to go now, but I'll tell you what, let's meet at the Diner for a late breakfast tomorrow? Let's say ten?" We agreed on ten, then he had to go. We said our goodbyes and I scrambled out of the car, ever clumsy.

I fiddled with the key ring for a moment, looking for the one that would allow me entrance into Sam's home. When I finally did make it in, I took my time to look around. I had only been here once before, and had only gotten the chance to see his kitchen and living room area.

There appeared to be two bedrooms, one was a spare with little furniture. It had a full-sized bed that was unmade, and obviously slept in. His pack brothers must have stayed here on occasion. The other bedroom was Sam's. It just felt like him. I let my fingers drift along the fabrics and fixtures in the room. I was able to pick up a sense of Sam's essence in a tangible way. It seemed sort of like what Jasper could do as an empath whenever someone wasn't in the room anymore but there was some sort of impression of them left behind. I would need to write this down in the journal too.

I set my bags down on the hardwood floor beside the bed. I stared at the worn blankets for a moment and inexplicably just knew which side of the bed he usually slept in.

Dragging myself away from his bed I looked at the mostly bare walls and was overwhelmed by the sense of loneliness that I knew Sam must have felt often until he had become a part of the pack. That also explained the pride and love I felt once my eyes settled on a framed picture of the whole pack together on the beach.

Eventually, I made my way out of his room and down to the basement, which was basically just a laundry room and a large office. There were shelves lined with books and extremely old journals. I let my fingertips drift over the spines and leather bindings.

I nearly jumped out of my skin when the sound of the doorbell rang throughout the small home.

"Bella" Angela smiled, pulling me into a warm hug. "Something's different?" She said, her brows furrowed in thought.

I smiled, but didn't get the chance to say anything because suddenly Jake had his nose stuck in my hair.

"You smell like Sam" he blurted, pulling back from me.

"Well yeah, Jake." Angela said, confused as to why he was stating the obvious.

"No, I mean even more than normal..." He was still looking at me, determined to figure my scent out.

"Sam marked me." I told them, and pulled the collar of my shirt to the side to show them my new mark.

"Huh. None of us have done that yet." He mumbled, still giving me a strange look.

"I saw a whole bunch of old journals and books, do you think there might be something in them about marking?" I asked, hoping he would know.

"Sure, I don't see why not." Jake answered, as he lounged on the couch and flipped the TV on.

Ange rolled her eyes, then grabbed my hand, leading me down the stairs and back down into the basement.

"I'll help you look!" She told me excitedly.

"OK. So first thing's first." She stated seriously, as she pushed her glasses up her thin nose. "I really did not know that Emily was excluding you from the bonfire tomorrow night. Kim didn't either. You're our friend and also… you know as Sam's mate, we look up to you as our leader of sorts."

"I know Ange, don't worry about that. I will be at the bonfire. As Sam's mate, it's my responsibility to welcome Amanda to the pack."

"I like your style." She told me, shyly. "So, what are you going to say to Em when you get there?"

"Well, I need the whole pack's approval for the mating mark to stick and for us to move on to the next stage of becoming marked mates. Even if I say the right things to her, I will also need to gain Paul's approval, too. It feels like an impossible task for me." I decided to go with transparent honesty. "I do know that whatever I say, I have to be upfront about it… like I should have been with you. I was very hurt that you didn't tell me about Jake the whole time you'd been dating. He really hurt me before I knew about the wolves and he phased. He couldn't be around me and I took that as an abandonment, yet you never told me that you two had started dating, even though I had confided in you all that time ago. It wasn't just that you were dating him, it had more to do with the fact that you'd hid it from me."

"Oh Bella, I really am sorry… I wish that I had handled things differently back then." I could see the genuine regret in her eyes. I pulled her to me and we shared a sisterly hug.

"I know Ange, I forgive you, I just needed to actually let it all out. My whole life was just so far out of my control then. I'm in a much better place now, and I promise there's no hard feelings," I assured her. And just like that, any residual tension there had been between us faded away into nothingness.

"So, tell me what it's like to be marked?" she asked with wide, innocent eyes. Then she added in a whisper, "I want Jake to do it, but I don't know how to tell if he wants to, or how to tell him that it is what I want."

"Honestly, just tell him how you feel. That's all I did with Sam, then the wolf did the rest," I encouraged her suggestively. We both giggled, then started to sift through all the books and journals. We pulled out anything that had to do with imprinting and marking as we went.

"Aw, Bella, come take a look at this!" Angela called after a little while of quiet.

When I looked over her shoulder, I saw that she was looking at a very old photo album. The pictures were all in black and white. The paper was thick and browned with age. There were several pictures of men in traditional garb and I froze when Angela flipped to one specific page.

"Oh my god," I gasped. The picture was of the human form of my dream wolf. He had come to me as a human the last time I had dreamt of him and now here he was. He'd been real.

"Is there a name on this picture?" I asked her, and she gingerly pulled the photograph out of its plastic sleeve.

"Yeah, it's labeled as Haylas Lahote. Hmm…. must be related to Paul." She muttered, examining the photo closely. "Actually, they do look similar, don't you think?"

I was still, frozen in thought, when she turned to look at me, expecting some sort of response.

"Bella?" She asked in concern.

"I don't see why someone in relation to Paul would come to me? Uh… I've been having dreams of a wolf who shows me things… I mean I knew the dreams weren't total nonsense or anything, but I didn't expect him to be a real person." I told her, probably sounding like a crazy person.

"Um.. you're not really making any sense Bella." Angela turned her head to look at the stairs that Jake was now descending, taking two stairs at a time.

"Sorry… I wasn't trying to listen in, but both of your heartbeats are sped up, and Bells, your's skyrocketed, is everything ok?" Jake asked once he'd made it fully down the steps to stand in front of us.

Angela didn't say anything, she just shook her head and shrugged, pushing the photo into his hands.

"Huh kinda looks like Charlie, doesn't it Bells! Is that what has you all worked up?" Jake asked, innocently.

"What the hell?" I snatched the photo from his hands and I could feel my eyes widening as I realized he was right.

"I thought he looked an awful lot like Paul. And his name is Haylas Lahote, so they have to be related somehow." Angela commented. I could vaguely hear Jake agree that they also looked alike. I also heard them both put the pieces together too.

"Wait. Bella, isn't Charlie adopted?" Jake asked.

"Not adopted, but his mother, who was Quileute gave him up to his father's care, his father was white, so she thought that he would have a better opportunity with him. Because of racial tensions back then she wasn't allowed to be with him or be around a baby Charlie. It's sad, Charlie doesn't talk about it much and I haven't ever met my grandparents so I didn't even think that this could be possible." I spoke out in a rush. I was dizzy and felt like I couldn't catch my breath. Paul and I were related? Was Haylas Lahote my great grandfather? My great uncle or something? Paul hated me… Emily didn't like me either… suddenly my vision went black and I fell to the floor, passed out cold.

Author's Notes:

I hope you guys like this new twist... I mean we can't go too long without a big shock and some drama right?

I am sorry that the chapter is a little short, I am just excited that things are really moving along and the plot is fast unfolding. I know a lot is being introduced right now such as this twist, Edward's strange mind-control ability, the venom, Victoria's involvement, alpha female role, and the whole mating ritual... it's a lot. Hang in there though because it is all connected and the story is right on track!

Happy Reading!

~Dahlia~