Chapter 9

"Here it is!" I say looking at the light yellow two story home from across the street. Two cars are parked in the driveway. Marcus's car parked in front of the house. Paul looks at me. The day is the day. Today is the day that I meet my biological family. "Made a mistake wearing a yellow sundress to a yellow house." I bluntly say crossing my arms. I brought it this morning at this clothing store on the tribe.

A big mistake. You know what? Let me just get this over with. I sigh walking across the street to the house while Paul don't move. "You coming?" I ask turning to him. "No." He answer. "I would like some support." I say walking back to him. I grab his right hand and try to move him but he stands like the statue that he is. Being that third put that weight on you.

The front door opens up to Marcus. "Only you. Come on." He say. "No!" I defiantly say wrapping my arms around Paul's waist hearing my heart speeding up. He walks out of the house and close the door behind him. He walks down the porch. "Rachel is back. I have to go meet her." Paul say. "Cool. We can go together. Shoot! Bring her over here, Paul. Don-" "Stop being a child." Marcus say walking across the street.

"Okay." I nervously say letting Paul go. I pace for a few second. "Very nerve wrecking but it'll be okay. I got her." He say. Paul begins his walk down the sidewalk to his car. "I took the car keys." I tell him. He opens his driver's door and get in. "Do you need a minute?" Marcus asks. "I'mma cry." I honestly tell him.

I'm not ready to meet his family. Paul's car drives off. I try to run behind him but Marcus grabs my arms and pull me close to him. "Need a minute?" He ask me. "A little bit. Do they know?" I ask eyes widening. "No. Never will." He say. "Hold me." I cry out wrapping my arms around his waist. "You'll be okay." He say giving me a hug. I hug him back. This is so horrible.

"Sixteen years. I'm ready. Mom not home till two more days. I'm ready." I strongly say. I'm taking energy from him. He leads me across the street to his parents' house. This is the big moment. The front door opens up to an African American middle aged woman. She looks a little like big Marcus. Her expression turns to shocked. "Mom, this is Mia. Mia, this is my mother Veronica." He say leading me up the porch steps.

She closes the front door stunned. "She needs a minute." He say upset. "That's her. Tha-" The front door opens back up to a tribal man. He opens the screen door shocked looking at me. "How it happened, right?" Marcus asks still holding onto me. I bite on my bottom lips not knowing what to say. How can you speak towards this family about an issue? "Two more days. Come in, Mia." He say voice hinting anger. Come in. As much as I don't want too, Marcus forces me in.

I listened to my biological parents' stories for almost two hours and learning new facts about them. I walked through the forest in a daze. I was in disbelief believing this story. Just how can not know that you birthed out two babies in a hospital in the presence of a doctor and a nurse. It's too much to believe but DNA speak. I'm Shawn's fraternal twin.

It was too much for me to handle so I decided to pay Jade a visit at her new house. A house she shares with family. "Smells clean." I shout walking inside of the house. "Some type of joke?" Dave ask sitting on the couch wearing a loose white shirt and blue shorts. "Just that the house is clean." I say smirking. "You can leave." Jade say walking out of a room toting a laundry basket.

"Just amazes me. Three months can change your life." I say flopping down in the recliner. "How? This been my house." He say sitting up. I chuckle. "Don't feed into her." She say walking into the kitchen. Dave grin looking me over. Ew. "Bethany talks about you being in that Sam Uley gang." He say. "Recognize for my older brother. Uleyna." I proudly say tapping on my tat.

"Didn't you go to school with Sam, Dave?" Jade asks from the laundry room. I'm shocked. Sam never once spoke on going to school with him. I'll have to bring it up. "Senior Year. He went left. He broke up with his girlfriend and started dating her cousin. Crazy. Gang member." He say relaxing back on the couch. Alex must be sleeping in his crib.

"I found my twin brother three months ago." I say crossing my legs. "Twin brother? Jade, you hear this?" Dave ask amused looking in the direction of the kitchen. "What are you talking about?" She ask walking out. "Hanging with Sam's gang. I met him on the beach. He looks just like me. His birthday is May 14th." "That's two days. She never mentioned you having a twin brother." She say in disbelief taking a seat on the couch.

"Yeah. Word on the street is that she stole me at birthday from a lady named Veronica. She has a husband. Three other kids. An older son. Another fraternal twin set." I say starting to get emotional. "Are you sure?" She ask grabbing the house phone off the coffee table. "DNA test proved it. I been hanging with the brothers. I thought the case was dropped cause it was no arrests of Mom. She was switching houses."

"She moved to one house and went to Las Vegas. She wanted a smaller house. Did you tell her?" She ask me. "I speak to her only on the phone. The relationship is distant cause of my gang ties. As parent, you think drugs so it went downhill." "Is it drugs?" Dave ask me. "Naw. Just hanging with a good set of friends. We're cool. A emo gang. We understand each other."

I speak highly of my pack. My second family. "What you think?" Dave ask Jade. "Mom never mentioned it. She didn't know then she didn't know." "She know now. She come back from Vegas in two days, right?" "If she comes back. She has nothing to hide then she's okay. Can't have Alex's grandmother being a fugitive." She say worried.

"Right. I wondered if she ever mentioned anything about an old boyfriend or having a woman as an enemy? Multiple theories are going around seeing how I share Sam's last name. I'm African American. Mom is that." "His daddy left him and his mom when they were younger unless she found him." Dave say flipping the channels on the TV. "I can ask her but she never mentioned it."

"Just she's the type to snatch a child to hold a man close to her?" Dave asks showing his white teeth. I glare looking into his blue eyes. God, I can't stand him. "Does it matter?" Jade ask him. "Matter a little bit. Outta my house, Mia. I don't people who their hands on me." He say turning the volume up. "Say the same thing about these unpaid bills on your TV." I say getting up from the recliner.

I walk across the TV. You can see the 'Due' stamp on the envelope. "Mia, wait." Jade say. I laugh turning to look at her. What does she want? "We are struggling to keep this house. You're in a gang." She say. "Not that type of gang, Jade. Get a job." I tell the both of them. "Housewife." He say hitting Jade's right thigh. "Unemployed. How we expect to bring in money?" She ask.

"The tribe is always looking for cops. Go apply." I say backing up against the screen door. "I could. Fast money is all of the joy." He say resting his elbows on his thighs. "Not my way." I casually say opening the screen door and leaving out of the house. I hop off the porch. "Mia, wait." Jade say. I sigh walking up the steps and open the screen door.

"Take Alex for a few hours. Three months is enough, right?" She ask getting up off the couch and going down the hall. "Make his diaper bag." I say crossing my arms. "You know damn well that you love your nephew." Dave say. "Why the cussing?" "Why the dress?" "Met my biological family today." I say. "Rich?" Dave ask. "In gun. Big daddy got a-" "Big Daddy?" He ask grabbing his private area.

I groan disgusted. Dave is nasty as hell. "Jade, hurry up!" I shout. "Coming." She say walking out of the room toting Alex and his diaper bag. I meet her halfway and take my baby. I kiss his cheeks and take her diaper bag. "What time?" I ask placing him on my shoulder. "Nine." She quickly say heading back in the kitchen. "Nine." I laugh out walking back to the front door.

"Tomorrow." Dave say. "Whatever." I whisper going out of the house and down the steps. I'll bring him back at eight. I head down the walkway hearing Dave getting up from his seat and walking to the screen door. I sigh walking down the sidewalk disgusted. I walk for ten minutes till I come towards a forest and cut through. It's a twenty minutes walk till I reach Sam's backyard to see him and his cousin on the back porch eating.

"Who is this?" Sam ask walking across the backyard. "This is Alexander." I say rubbing on his back. He's still sleeping. Soon as I reach Sam, he takes him out of my arms and kiss his cheeks. Oh, wow. "I gotta patrol in thirty." I say taking the diaper bag off my shoulder and holding it out. "How it go?" He ask taking the diaper bag.

"Horrible. I didn't want to hear that it was all a lie. I ain't want to hear their side. It got me questioning my mother and I talked to Jade. She knew nothing." I say watching Sam awe over Alexander. "Your mother's secret. You give your biological mother a hug?" He ask. I shake my head disgusted. "I'll rather it be left alone. Now, I gotta be forced to accept them."

"Over time you'll get used to your real family. Go Patrol." Sam say walking back to his backdoor. "Right." I say in a dead tone heading back for the forest. I don't want to be get to know them as my real family.

The wind blows through the dark cloud. The Full Moon is shining a moonlight through the forest. I shake my head heading for Dave's house. Four hours patrolling is horrible in a certain way. All we do is run around the tribe even though it's relaxing when you're a wolf. It's natural. Very natural. I hear the police sirens and the ambulance in the distant.

Is that coming from Jade's neighborhood? I run through the forest till I reach the sidewalk. I run down the sidewalk till I see yellow tape around Dave's house. A crowd of people is standing behind the tape. An ambulance is parked. Cop cars are around. What is going on? My heart start to speed up. An EMT walks out of the front door wheeling out a stretcher out.

My heart skips a heartbeat over the black bag. The scent of a familiar woman hits my nose in the wind. Jade! That smells like Jade! My heart starts to race. Det. Gomez walks out of the house with a cop behind him. I turn around emotionless and head back down the sidewalk for the forest once again. Jade is dead. Once I walk into the forest, I simply walk. I don't care where my feet take me. This is the worse day ever.