To Scooterstale, my beta, thank you for not giving up on me.

Disclaimer: no copyright infringement intended. I'm just having some fun with these characters.

Chapter 18

John and Mathew looked worriedly at me for the rest of the journey. It didn't go unnoticed that I vomited in the bathroom, neither did my moistened eyes. Thankfully, Alice seemed to be sleeping peacefully in her sleep. After putting the DVDs aside, I closed my eyes pretending to be asleep, but sleep never came.

We landed in Seattle at midnight, local time. It was drizzling and we stepped out of the airplane in silence. We decided to spend the night at a local hotel before continuing our trip to Forks. It was late and we were tired, except for Alice who slept over six hours and was a little hyper compared to all the other drained faces, myself included.

That secret made me feel like I was carrying the weight of the world, making me exhale soundly into the cold night. I needed further proof, but if my worst fears were confirmed I'd have to confront Edward, and that wasn't something I was looking forward to doing.

It was still drizzling when we arrived in Forks. Everything seemed to be in place: my dad's cruiser was parked in its usual spot, and as soon as I put my feet on the ground I had arms encircling me.

"Bella!" Emmett boomed.

"Put me down you brute!" I said, struggling to breathe as he squeezed my chest forcefully.

"Hey guys," he said, shaking hands with John and Mathew as soon as he let me go. "Come inside. Dad is flipping out already. You have some serious explaining to do... I let him conjecture freely since I know very little as well," he teased me.

"Where's Mom?" I asked, feeling anxious. That was the million dollar question.

"She's at her apartment, for now. You want us to call her?"

"I guess I'd rather talk to her later... I think that having Dad around might ease her natural predisposition to overreact."

"Since when?" Emmett asked seriously. "You know her better than that," he warned.

"At least now I'll have means to appease her," I tried to joke.

"Please do. If not for Rose, I don't think you'd still have someone to call 'Mom'. She made my life a living hell over the past couple of days."

After noticing Alice's presence for the first time, he asked, "And who is this?"

"Alice More, nice to meet you. Bella invited me to spend New Year's Eve with you," she said eagerly.

"Oh! Of course... Nice to meet you too, I'm Emmett."

They shook hands and seemed to bond instantly. At that moment, Dad came out as well and I could almost hear a silent sigh of relief.

"You're home," was all he said before holding me almost as tight as Emmett had before.

"For good," I promised. I had no intention of living that far from him and I'd probably force my brother to do the same. "Let me introduce you to Alice More," I said, breaking the intense silence. Rose came out from behind both men and hugged me tightly as well. She was pleased to finally meet Alice personally. They had already met through e-mails and Skype conferences regarding the a.m. advertising campaign.

They exchanged some pleasantries before Alice excused herself, stating she was tired and needed a shower. I took her to my old bedroom and she nearly squealed in excitement. For some reason, she found it endearing and seemed almost thrilled to share it with me. She would change her mind later when she would actually have to share the little bed with me.

My dad sat in his usual seat and listened as patiently as he could. His eyes widened at the amount of money I had inherited, but he refrained from commenting and, unexpectedly, so did Emmett and Rosalie – they were too shocked to form words. It was only when I told my dad about how I got acquainted with the bottom of a nearly frozen river that the silence was broken.

"Do you have any idea about who might have done something like that?" he asked after I told him everything down to the most insignificant detail. He was in his best police chief mode.

"I suppose that any member of the More family had something to lose."

"But who had the most to lose?"

"Edward," I said without a second guess, "but he was the one who saved me."

"So the main suspect is innocent. What about Alice More?" Emmett asked.

"She was the one who called Edward to pick me up. Besides, both Uncle Thomas and Henry trusted her blindly, so implicitly so do I."

"All right, kiddo, there's a lot to think about. Just try to be safe, I don't want you going anywhere alone until we solve this. Are you sure this JJ can handle this?"

"I hope so. I don't think the police there are too worried about my complaint. For now I'll just have to keep John and Mathew near. I'm not going to do anything stupid, I promise," I said with teary eyes.

"So what are you going to do now?" Rosalie asked.

"That's the million dollar question. I think for now I'll just go to Seattle and do my residency as planned. Henry designated me a tutor to help me get acquainted with the basics of economics and business management and I'll probably keep the same administrative counselors and executives that worked for him, at least until I have an idea of what I'm doing. For now I just want to spend a nice New Year's Eve with my family and friends and celebrate the fact that I'm still alive. And that reminds me, please don't tell Mom about this yet. I honestly tried to picture in my head what her reaction to all of this would be and none of the possible scenarios are tranquilizing."

"You have to tell her," Dad said.

"I was thinking I could tell her I inherited enough to pay for my college loan and to help her pay for that new car she wanted… Technically I wouldn't be lying."

"Unh, good luck with that…"

"So you want to run an empire while doing your residency at the hospital? No one expects you to be able to do both at the same time," Emmett said.

"I mean at this point I'm not even sure of what I'm expected to do. I'll have to rely on other people's expertise when it comes to business. I´m not too thrilled about being so dependent, but at least until I decide what I'm going to do with this tremendous amount of money I think I'll just have to try to do my best to manage the situation… I'm not ready to give up my own dreams… Honestly, I think that Edward would be better for the position than I am. It's scary how many jobs and lives I'm responsible for now."

"It's not like it's that different from what you do on a daily basis, I mean people already trust you with their health, they put their lives in your hands, literally speaking," my brother said, trying to give me some reassurance.

"It's different, that´s something I was prepared to do, that I chose to do."

"Are you saying that you want to give up all that fortune?" Rosalie asked in awe.

"I'm not sure. I promised myself I'd think things through before making any decisions, though I have to admit that it's tantalizing to get rid of everything that's causing me all this trouble. These last few days have been almost agonizing. I don't like to be suspicious of everyone around me, to have to always be looking over my shoulder. Obviously I see the benefits, I worried about how long it would take for me to pay for my loan, I can help Mom settle down, and I would be lying if I said that I don't find the idea of being able to have you and Rosalie back home highly attractive."

"You want us to come back?" Emmett asked with a smile on his face.

"Of course I do! You're family and I miss you. I want you back."

"Can we talk about this later?" Rosalie asked.

"Sure, it's always your decision," I answered when I realized I was probably crossing a line. Their decision to go to Sydney wasn't just about the money…

"And what are we going to do about Mom?"

"What about Mom?" my mother asked, entering the room.

"Shouldn't those guys be controlling the entrance?" My dad asked, a little miffed that Mom walked in his house without anyone taking notice.

"They already met in Sydney, Dad," I explained.

"Yeah, why is John here?" she asked. Obviously she didn't take notice of Mathew when John was around. I was hoping that flirt would die in Australia as her good mood and humble disposition had. There would be no such luck and the poor man would have to endure the impropriety of his boss's mom's harassment.

"He's with me," I stated simply.

"So, what is this all about? Have you done anything wrong?"

"No, I haven't," I answered, a little bothered by her assumption. "I need protection, Mom. Someone tried to kill me in England and I suspect that it had something to do with the money I inherited from Lord Henry More."

"I knew it! You inherited money? How much?" she asked a little hysterically. "Oh, we're rich aren't we?"

And the only word she registered from the last sentence I told her was money. I looked at my dad with watery eyes, pleading for his help.

"No, Mom, you´re not rich, Bella is," Emmett interrupted without delay.

I could see the glint of greed in her eyes, the one that Grandma saw and always tried to ignore and pass off as a healthy amount of ambition.

"It's the same!" she stated, but as she saw Emmett's asinine look she backtracked quickly. "Oh, Bella, but how did this happen?"

I answered as truthfully as I could. I told her about how Henry loved Grandma Marie and why they were separated. I purposefully left out my grandma´s pregnancy because I feared it would be too much information, too soon. I did tell her, though, about her having an uncle and an aunt. But I told her about why Henry approached me and about his testament, without entering into the details concerning the exact amount of money involved. Her eyes started to widen with anger. At first, I though her animosity was towards what happened to me and to Grandma Marie, but she proved me wrong.

"Your grandmother was never a practical woman; pride stole her chance to thrive in life. What was she thinking?" she nearly yelled. "You have to do something about this nonsense, I should be the one inheriting everything, after all I am the daughter! It was a mistake for sure!"

"I can guarantee you that that was not the case; he was well aware that you were Grandma's daughter. He saw you on the airplane and I told him you were my mother…"

"It's impossible! You're stealing what should have been mine," she yelled.

"Not long ago you were referring to it as ours!" I accused. "Mom, did you listen to anything I just said? The part I told you about someone trying to kill me? Or about Henry's choice of social status over love?"

"Maybe I'm his daughter," she mused.

"Mom, stop it! You're insulting Grandpa's memory!" Emmett stepped in. "Bella, can you see where this is going? Don't let her manipulate you to get what she wants!"

"Always trying to push your sister against me. Certainly now there's more for you to win!" she shrieked.

And then there was a dreadful succession of events: Rose covered her mouth with her hand to suppress whatever she was about to say while Emmett told Mom how much he was sorry to have such a person as a mother, at the same time as she screamed at me, demanding that I should say something in her defense, that she had rights, that anyone could see that she should have inherited something as well. All in all… nothing new within our family, except that this time her tears didn't guilt trip me into doing something I didn't want to. After a lot of senseless accusations, my dad stepped in, inviting my mother to leave. As always, she tried to charm him with little gestures that simulated an intimacy they might never have shared before, namely leaning in for support, the occasional touch to his hands and forearms, waving her hair a little to permeate the air with her scent… For the first time, nothing worked. I pitied her because I knew that in her own way, she loved us, she just loved herself more than anyone else in that room. I happened to also know what money did to people. Her failed marriage with Phil gave her a whole new perspective on the subject, considering how much she lost. She needed the money.

"Mom," I said as she was about to leave. "I'll help you out. I'll make sure your loan is paid for, I'll buy you a new car and I'll even give you an allowance. You'll be fine, I would never consider leaving you in a hard position to fend for yourself. I never did that before and I never will…"

"Thank you, thank you, thank you, I knew I could count on you," she said, interrupting me while giving me an awkward, tight hug. "Think of all the things we can do now, all the things we can buy! Maybe even a new house? I'll open my own business…"

"That's just great, Isabella," my brother reprimanded me, interrupting her. "Do what she wants. You think I don't know you helped pay for her lawyer while you were struggling financially to get through your last year in med school? When will this stop? She's a leech, always wanting more. She spent money on her new boy toy but not on her kids. If not for Dad we wouldn't have gone to college! We owe her nothing, you owe her nothing!"

"It's not your money, you ungrateful bastard!" Mom yelled.

"For the past few days all you did was bad talk about Bella and now that she said she'll solve your problems she's your favorite daughter again. All is forgiven, right? Oh, Emmett," he said, imitating her voice, "your sister abandoned us, now that I need her so much… always helping everyone, except for her family, those who are close to her!"

"That's enough! Mom, I'll give you what I find appropriate, as long as you keep your job. That's my condition. I'll help you pay for whatever you need to make your apartment as comfortable as possible and I'll supplement your salary as I see fit, but the moment you step out of line again I'll cancel everything, and I mean it. I've had enough of you and your tantrums and if you keep acting like a teenager then you force me to treat you as one. At this point I'm willing to pay you, not only because you're my mother, but because I want you out of my life with a clear conscience and I know money will seal the deal. This discussion is killing me and I've had enough of that in the past few days for a lifetime. My lawyers will get in touch," I said, nearly crying. I was making every effort to avoid a breakdown.

"Bella, baby, please, it's not like that. I love you, baby girl," her voice softened.

"I love you too, Mom, I just can't deal with this and you at the same time. I need some space."

"Sweetheart," she persisted.

"My lawyers, Mom. They will talk to you…"

"When?" She realized my decision was firm.

"Next week, I promise you. Until then I forbid you to talk about money with me. And you should keep what we talked today to yourself. I really don't want to worry even more about my safety than I already do," I warned her. "Can I trust you with this? It's the last chance I'll give you."

She must have seen that my reasoning wouldn't waver because she stormed off without saying anything.

"Great, you just bought Mom's silence," Emmett said sarcastically. "Had I known before I wouldn't have stopped playing the lottery. Jesus, you almost deserve what she does to you. You enable her."

"Emmett, you're not being fair to your sister," my dad intervened.

"Bella, I'm sorry, it's just…"

"It's fine, Emmett. I get it. I'm going to lie down for a while. I have a guest and a party to attend. Dad, can you tell Jake that I'm taking a friend to his party?"

"She always apologizes," I said as I entered my room. We hadn't exactly been quiet, so I knew Alice must have heard the whole discussion. She sat on my bed, her face impassive, framed with dampened hair. There was a glint of sadness and understanding in her eyes. She was giving me time to process my feelings. I walked to the window and looked outside in order to avoid her gaze. Mathew waved at me and gave me an 'OK' sign. There was no danger in sight. I waved back before continuing.

"I don't know if she does so because she means it or because she's expected to. I never regarded her as a bad person but as immature... Now I'm not sure anymore," I confessed.

"You're experiencing what money does to people first hand. Maybe she just needs time to adjust, as you do. I know that Edward really likes you and look how he reacted. He regretted his words the moment they came out of his mouth. People will come around."

I didn't ask about her brother as I was still too worried about the fact that she heard my family's argument. It disturbed me that we barely knew each other and she already knew so much. Henry's words echoed in my mind - take care of Alice, he wrote, but in that conflicted moment of my life, she was the one who took care of me.

I eventually fell asleep with my head in her lap. A couple of hours later, Alice woke me up.

"Your brother just knocked, apparently we're running late!"

I must have made a face at her words - partying was the last thing on my mind at the moment.

"Come on, don't even think about it! You promised! I didn't spend hours readjusting the perfect dress for nothing."

"Alice, I'm not sure that dress is appropriate for the party we're attending," I said, a little embarrassed that I hadn't thought about that before.

I heard a soft knock before the door opened.

"Glad you're awake," Rosalie said.

"Rosalie is wearing a dress," Alice beamed.

"What?" my sister-in-law asked, confused.

"Bella was about to argue that the dress I chose for her wasn't the right outfit for the party we're attending. Now I see that it couldn't be farther from the truth!"

I was distracted by the buzzing sound coming from my nightstand. Alice picked up her phone quickly and turned it off. We eyed her questioningly and she blushed a little.

"It's just my brother," she explained.

"Maybe you should let him know you're okay," Rosalie suggested.

"Fine," she said, dialing her PIN number.

"Fifteen missed calls, that's quite an accomplishment," she chuckled. "Do you think it's terrible of me to admit that I'm enjoying this… a lot. I mean, did Margaret wear the orange dress? It must be nearly midnight there," she chuckled. "Maybe she had to re-wear an ensemble. That would be almost as good!"

"Come on, call your brother – he must be worried about you. You told me on the plane that you'd call him as soon as we landed. But you didn't, did you?" I accused her.

"I forgot," she said simply, making a very poor effort to hide that she was lying.

"Right," I chuckled, "Just call him, I don't want to be accused of kidnapping."

"Fine!" she said, dialing the number and putting the phone on speaker, winking. He answered right away.

"Alice?" His voice sounded clear and relieved in the background.

"Yes, I'm sorry I didn't call you earlier. I fell asleep."

Liar.

"Alice, do you have any idea of how worried we've been? Jesus!" he exhaled loudly.

"How's the party going?" she asked.

"The party, what party? You've been missing for the last 24 hours! We cancelled everything! I was beginning to assume the worst. The last time I saw you, you were leaving with Isabella because of some dress, but you didn't go to More Park. Where the hell are you and where the hell is she? She never came back, either. Greta Masterson didn't want to tell me where she was. She told us she was going back home, but Henry's private plane never left England. Someone recently tried to kill her and…" he exhaled loudly again before continuing, "If she doesn't care about her safety, there's nothing I can do…" His words lingered. "Ali, are you alright?" he said, almost choking. He sounded like he was trying not to cry.

Alice's countenance fell a little as soon as she realized that she had ended up punishing the wrong person.

"Yeah, I'm fine."

"Nothing happened, you're safe?" he asked.

"I am."

"I am so getting back at you for this, you almost killed me! I was so worried and so are Mum and Dad! And you never answered my first question, where are you?"

Alice looked at me and tried to pick her phone up to prevent me from listening to the explosion we both knew would follow.

"Don't," I whispered.

"I'm in America."

"Where in America?"

"In Forks, Bella's hometown."

For a few moments, he didn't answer. After exhaling again, he spoke a lot more calmly than I expected.

"So you're both alright?"

"Yes, we are. Say hello to my brother, Bella. See? He's not such an ogre."

"Hi, Edward," I stated lamely.

"Are you taking good care of my sister?"

"I am, I brought my security team with us and my dad is the Police Chief. We'll be fine."

"Oh, we will, Bella said we're going to spend New Year's Eve down at the Rez, surrounded by her tall, dark, native American friends. How much safer could we be?"

"Is that right?" he asked, annoyed. "I'm glad some of us are having a good time while the others were left at home, worrying."

"Edward, I love you and I'm sorry, but we really have to get ready, you know? Bella's letting me dress her up!" Alice said excitedly.

"Oh, that's just great…" I heard him mutter.

"I'll call you later, tell Mum I'm sorry."

"You're not getting away with this that easily, you know that, right?"

"I'll worry about that later. Love you," she said hurriedly and disconnected. Her phone rang again but she turned it off.

"See? I called! Now let's get ready! Hey Rosalie, don't you think my brother was jealous?"

They both laughed at the same time, conspiratorially.

"We're not in high school anymore. Come on, girls!"

My little room was a mess when we left it an hour later to go downstairs. The dress Alice put me in was long but left little to the imagination. I felt a little awkward, and was absolutely convinced that it was too over the top, but Alice and Rosalie were impeccably dressed as well, and that gave me a little reassurance.

"I'm not sure I can leave my little sister walking around in that. Aren´t you going to be cold?" Emmett asked.

"She'll wear a coat," Alice stepped in.

"You look good, Bells."

"Thanks, Dad."

"Now come on, we're going to be late."

"Where are John and Mathew?" I asked

"Right behind you!" Mathew said, winking as I turned around.

"Behave," I scolded him.

"Yes, Ma'am."

John gave him a disapproving look and moved to my right.

"I'll drive," he said authoritatively.

I took a deep breath when I saw La Push's lights nearing us. I hadn't seen Jacob personally in a while. I'd been avoiding him since I broke up with Mike.

"Are you excited about tonight?" Alice asked, breaking the silence.

"I am."

"You look worried."

"I have a lot to worry about."

She smiled and didn't press the subject further. She could read through people so well…

I stepped out of the car with Mathew's help. They tried to mingle since I told everyone that they were my friends from the hospital. No one questioned me so I guessed that my mother kept her part of the deal. I forced a smile in her direction but kept my distance. Dad, on the other hand, approached her, keeping her busy. At least I hoped that was his intention. I caught her glancing in John's direction more than once. Some things would never change.

The ambience was great; they had decorated their ballroom with bright colors. They obviously used their traditional patterns as an inspiration and it looked wonderful – modern and traditional were in perfect harmony. As for the dress, as I looked around, I noticed that everyone had dressed up for the occasion. I thought I'd see most people in jeans, but as usual I was wrong. Even though most of them were carefully dressed, I still felt like all eyes were on me. My dress was over the top. My grandma's necklace and the earrings Henry gave me completed the ensemble. Real diamonds were not common in this part of the world.

"Bella, you came! Jake was moping all around the place until your dad called yesterday telling him you'd be here after all."

"How are you, Seth?" I asked him while embracing him in a warm hug. He was a lot taller than me, so he used that advantage to kiss me on my forehead.

"I'm great, even better now that you're here." I noticed he said that while staring at Alice, who was blushing furiously at the flirting.

"I'm sorry, I didn't introduce you. Seth, this is my friend Mary Alice."

"Just Alice," she corrected me.

"She's a fashion designer," I told him. "You know, Alice, he's done some modeling before."

"He definitely has what it takes…" she stuttered, checking him out.

I was doing my best to disguise how amused I was by their staring contest, when I was blinded momentarily by a flash.

Jake was looking at his camera, checking the photo he just took.

"What was that evil glint in your eyes for? Jesus, you look… breathtaking!"

"You don't look so bad yourself," I blushed.

I hadn't remembered he had such a presence. Jake had always been athletic, but seemed to be even more muscled than I remembered. His eyes were the same, nearly black highlighted by some sort of natural eye liner and thick lashes. He was wearing a dark pair of jeans with a black button down shirt, simple but tasteful.

He hugged me and kissed my neck, making me shiver, burying his face in my hair.

"God, you smell just as I remembered," he whispered in my ear.

"Stop it, you're being weird," I admonished him lightly, putting some space between us.

"You know that olfactory memory is the most primitive sensory memory we have."

"You're a photographer, you should use your occipital cortex instead."

He looked at me questioningly.

"Your eyes, Jacob."

"I have the visual, all right."

"Oh, man, stop the innuendo," Seth stepped in.

"Jacob, let me introduce you to my friend, Alice, Alice More," I said.

"The Alice More?" he asked, "I knew your face was familiar. I'm Jacob Black."

"It's nice to meet you," she said, shaking his hand.

"Bella, do you want a drink?" Seth asked.

"Sure."

"Come on, Jake, let's get these ladies something to drink."

They both went off to the bar.

"He's cute," Alice said.

"Which one?" I asked, amused.

"Both." We laughed.

"Ladies," Rosalie stepped in with a glass of wine in hand. "I see you're already conquering attentions. Beware of the competition," she said, looking at Vanessa, who was shooting daggers at me.

"Good to know that some things never change," I said, eyeing Rosalie again. Alice was looking at us questioningly.

"Long story short, that, my friend," Rose started, "is Jacob's ex… She never got over knowing that Bella and Jacob used to be more than friends a few years ago. She became too much to bear and Jake broke up with her barely a week after Bella broke up with Mike. Got the picture?"

"How do you know all of this?" I asked Rosalie.

"Seth told Emmett. What, you didn't know?"

"Just what I needed, more drama! We're just friends!"

Alice was clearly amused. "Damn, I have to turn on my phone to send an MMS to my brother to show him what your 'friends' look like. He may have a panty-dropping smile… I've seen him in action… but really? He has nothing on that… I'm beginning to grow fond of the strong and dark type."

"Oh no, don't even dare… another Rosalie, that's just what I need."

"What?" they asked in unison.

The boys eventually came back with our drinks. After a couple of them, I was beginning to relax, and allowed Jacob to take me to dance. He held me a little too close to him, and even though the alcohol diminished my inhibitions and the fact that I needed the feeling of safety and warmth, I wasn't particularly fond of that sort of public display. I looked at the digital clock on the wall: 11:40 p.m.

"Excuse me, I have to go to the bathroom, I'll be right back."

He nodded, but said nothing. I grabbed my jacket and went outside for some air. I could listen to the music fading away as I stepped closer to the water. The night was dark and with the cloudy sky, there weren´t many stars to see.

I was alone.

I sank into the sand, not caring about ruining Alice's perfect dress, and cried, almost convulsively. There was no more reason to contain the sobs. The waves hitting the shore did a good job of muffling the steps behind me.

"Your concept of safety is clearly different from mine."

At first I didn't recognize the voice. He couldn't be there… I stood up, still sniffling, and turned in his direction.

"I was worried about Alice… and about you," Edward whispered.

"Shhh, don't cry," he said, brushing at the tears streaming down my face. "It'll be alright. Come here, you must be freezing."

He held me tightly, just as Jacob had before, but with him, it felt right. I should have walked away because I was supposed to hate him, but it still felt right, taking comfort in his arms.

At midnight, when his face was illuminated by the fireworks, I saw the most intense green eyes staring at me. For the first time I found them soft and warm, not brutal and calculating as before. They held the same amount of attraction at that moment as they had when we had first met, maybe even more.

"Happy new year, Bella."

Those eyes locked on my lips, just like they had only a couple of weeks before in Sidney, and he descended slowly, asking my permission.

"Happy new year, Edward."

"It is now…"

And he kissed me, softly at first, but growing more demanding as the moments passed. His hands travelled from my face to my neck and from there roamed almost everywhere they could reach. I opened a few buttons of his shirt just to feel a little more of him. He moaned into my mouth when he felt my hands on his bare chest.

As the midnight fireworks came to a halt, after the crescendo blasts of sound and light, so did we, like the spell we were under broke somehow. We were both panting heavily, trying to regain some composure.

"Come," he said softly. "Let's get you warm."

I could hear the smile in his voice. And for that night, maybe just that night, I allowed him to guide me through the darkness, trusting him.

AN:

I'm sorry about the delay… it seems like I'm always telling you this… to be honest RL is being hellish over the last couple of months between working 80 hours a week, night shifts, studying and making presentations there wasn't much time or inspiration to write.

Anyway, thank you all who PM'd me asking if everything is ok… it's amazing how many good friends I created in this site, making this experience really worthy.

For those of you who might have missed it, I updated a while ago another EPOV outtake. Check it out, if you haven't seen it yet.

As always, was this what you expected? This was a transitional chapter. Please leave a review.

See you soon, hopefully,

Nofrure.