Ending It

An uneasiness had settled in the next morning as Embry watched Mara. She had continued being vague and jumpy around him, though insisted it was nothing. After a call to the chief with no update, she settled to work at her laptop, writing up another article and then talking to her boss on the phone. Embry stood at the window, scanning their surroundings, though he kept an eye on her as well.

More and more, he was beginning to think that that brilliant mind of hers had started putting things together. Part of him actually hoped that she would just so he no longer had to keep hiding it from her. Sometime in the afternoon, he told her he was going out for a bit. The motel room was getting claustrophobic and he needed to phase so he could communicate with Jacob without her overhearing. Mara seemed almost relieved and assured him that she wouldn't leave the room.

He said he'd be back in about 20 minutes and quickly jogged into the woods a safe distance before phasing.

How are things going? he heard Jacob say.

Well… something may have come up, Embry quickly replied. I think she's figured it out.

Think? How?

She's smart. Asked a lot of questions about us. I was vague and left out all the stuff about vampires, but she's been a bit distant today, he replied. Would it be so bad if she knew? It would make things a lot easier. Emily and the others know.

That's because they live on the reservation and come into regular contact with vampires, Jacob replied. They are under the packs' protection.

But so is Mara, Embry replied.

It's different. You guys are going to be on your own in Seattle.

It's not different. We should tell her. She needs to know.

No, she doesn't. This is for her own safety.

Jacob-

You will not tell her about the vampires, Jacob ordered. Embry felt a pressure fall over him as the alpha order came through.

Fine, he replied. He couldn't tell her now even if he wanted to. There was suddenly chaos in his mind. What's going on?

Get back here. He's back, Jacob said.

I need to tell Mara.

Hurry. Cecily is already on her way to watch.

Embry quickly phased back and ran to the motel. He banged on the door and waited until a worried Mara opened it.

"I have to go. The packs have found it," he said quickly. Mara's eyes widened. "Stay inside until I get back. Keep the door locked. Do not come out until I come back and do not let anyone in." She nodded. He started to turn away, but Mara reached out and grabbed him, pulling him towards her. She quickly kissed him.

"Be safe," she said, her eyes full of worry. Embry smiled.

"I will be," he said. He left one last kiss on her lips before turning and running through the parking lot and across the highway, disappearing into the woods.

"Cecily?" he shouted once he was in them.

"Here," a voice said as the redhead stepped out from behind a tree. "Don't worry, I'll keep her safe." Embry nodded and then phased, taking off through the woods.

He's just ahead!

We're gaining on him!

Where are the Cullens?

Somewhere up ahead, I think. Said they were going to circle around and cut him off.

Embry pushed himself, his senses zeroing in on the sickly sweet scent left in the vampire's wake. Just up ahead, he could see him dodging through trees, occasionally looking back at the wolves hot on his trail. Anger started coursing through Embry's body as they got closer.

The bloodsucker had been about to hurt Mara that night on the beach and he wasn't going to give him another chance to get to her again.

Suddenly, the vampire was flying back into the air and collided with a tree.

Nice of Demetri to finally show up, Embry heard Quil say. The wolves quickly poured into the clearing, surrounding the now nervous-looking vampire, all of them with their teeth bared and snarling. He glanced around at them, eyes wide as he scrambled to his feet.

"You have created quite a spectacle," Demetri said smoothly as he walked into the clearing from the trees, Rosalie and Emmett just behind him. The vampire froze.

"The Volturi," he whispered. "Please, you must list-" The vampire started gagging, choking on his words as Demetri was suddenly across the clearing and holding him up by his throat.

"I'm not here for the Volturi," he said dryly as he looked up at the struggling vampire. "Therefore, I do not need to listen to your excuses or half-baked apologies. You've drawn some attention and killed humans in an area that is protected. You must face the consequences for that."

The vampire kicked as he attempted to scratch at Demetri's hands, all the while gargling as he attempted to speak. Cracks started appearing around his neck where Demetri was gripping it. Embry felt a stirring of something in his mind, but he wasn't quite sure. Something felt off. Part of him wished that Edward had been there so they could at least see into the vampire's head.

But at the same time, it was the same scent. This was the vampire that had been attacking and killing the local hikers. This was the stench he had smelled on the beach next to Mara.

"Emmett, Rosalie. If you would be so kind," Demetri said, his eyes still fixed on the vampire. Within seconds, it was over. Rosalie and Emmett were on one side of the clearing and then suddenly on opposite sides, each holding body parts as Demetri dropped the body and the head rolled away, the face frozen in a grotesque look of horror. Rosalie quickly gathered the parts together as Emmett tossed a match and set it on fire.

The wolves quickly phased back, walking up to watch the body burn.

"Wish they were all that easy," Emmett said, smiling.

The statement stuck in Embry's head. It had been too easy. They had spent weeks trying to catch this guy, all that time he had eluded them. And then suddenly they had been able to catch him just like that without much effort. He looked up, noticing an odd look had come across Demetri's face as he gazed off into the woods.

"What do you think it was?" Quil said.

"What do you mean?" Emmett asked.

"For weeks we couldn't even get close to this guy and then today… we probably didn't even need both packs out," Quil replied.

"Maybe he was distracted by something," Emmett said.

"Or had an accomplice?" Rosalie added.

"Or you guys don't want to admit that you need us," Emmett said, smirking.

"There was only ever one scent," Jacob said. "If another vampire had been in these woods, we would have smelled them."

Everyone then looked over at Demetri, who was still looking into the woods, a look of contemplation on his face.

"Something is odd," he said. Then suddenly he was gone.

"Where did he go?" Quil asked.

"Probably to check in with Cecily," Emmett said. "We'll go with him."

"We need to tell Chief Swan," Sam said. "Paul, you and Jared go take care of the next part of the plan." Paul nodded then he and Jared left the clearing.

"Embry, you should get back to Mara," Jacob said, disrupting his thoughts. Embry nodded and then turned, running through the woods.

It was over. Mara was safe.

But something in the back of his mind screamed that it wasn't over. Not really.

Mara quickly scanned through the website before closing it and moving on to the next one. The articles about the mysterious deaths were in a pile on her table next to the file of photos. She reread them and now saw them for what they were.

They were obviously murders committed by vampires.

Ever since Embry left, she had been on the internet searching for anything and everything she could find on vampire lore. A lot of it was bogus. She had found several websites devoted to amateur writers posting sordid vampire tales. Christ, people were obsessed with them.

But then she had come across a few sites that were helpful – mainly containing folklore from all over the world. It seemed every culture had its own version of vampires.

Part of her was tempted to call her mother and ask her what she knew about old legends around the state regarding vampires or something like them, but she quickly nixed that idea. She didn't want to bring her into it.

She then searched Quileute legends and found what Embry had been keeping from her. The reason the wolves had started phasing were due to the appearance of the cold ones. Vampires. He and the pack had phased because somewhere in Forks there were other vampires. And they had always been here from what it seemed.

Their whole purpose of existence was to protect the tribe from vampires.

Obviously, she couldn't use any of this. She hoped that Chief Swan and the packs came up with a believable alternative. Everything that she had already told Richard would have him suspicious if they had anything short of concrete.

A rapt knock on the door caused her to jump. She stood and peered out the window, seeing Embry there. Quickly, she closed out the websites and put the file away.

That was fast. He had only been gone a couple hours.

She then opened the door, relief filling her as she saw he was unharmed, though he appeared tired.

"Is it over?" she asked as he stepped in.

"Yea, it's over," he said, walking over and falling into one of the chairs. Mara nodded as she walked over and bent down, wrapping her arms around him.

"I'm just glad that you're okay," she said. Embry chuckled.

"I can handle a lot," he said. "And he was sorely outnumbered."

"He?" Mara asked as she let go and backed up. Embry blinked.

"Yea," he said. He wanted to tell her. Badly. But the gag order was still in place and the words couldn't come out no matter how hard he tried.

"Embry, what aren't you telling me?" she asked. He seemed to be struggling with his words, almost as though he couldn't get his tongue to work. "Embry?"

"I can't tell you," he said, looking up at her.

"Yes, you can," she said, frowning.

"No, I mean I literally can't. When an alpha gives an order, we have to obey it," he said.

"Jacob ordered you not to tell me," she said. He nodded. She took a deep breath and glanced over at the file on the table. "Then I suppose I can tell you. I know what was in the woods." Embry's eyes widened. "You were hunting a vampire, weren't you?"

Embry was silent. He knew she'd figure it out.

"How?" he finally asked.

"Well… you gave me enough hints," she said with a sigh as she reached over and grabbed the file. After dropping it in front of him, she flipped it open and started spreading the photos out. "And then I saw these and it all came together. Mike gave them to me yesterday."

Embry leaned up, looking at the photos. They were of the autopsies and crime scenes.

"I had a hunch that the reports Swan gave me weren't completely true. These confirmed it. They added other injuries to make it look like an animal. But in truth the only real injuries were the bite marks - and they weren't as extensive as they made them out to be in the reports. Save the guy that got his neck broken. Though the biggest was when Mike told me that they were drained of blood," she said with a sigh. Embry looked up at her.

"You've been busy," he said, a smile tugging at his lips.

"This is honestly your fault… you were the one who told me that there are other things out there besides you guys… I've spent the time you were gone going through vampire folklore. Came across those legends you mentioned," she said. "Care to tell me why it was so dangerous for me to know?" Embry sighed as she leaned against the table and crossed her arms in front of her.

"Vampires have a strict law – humans aren't to know about their existence," he said. "There are these sort of law enforcers – the Volturi – they will kill any human they find that knows about them. Unless they are turned." Mara's eyes widened.

"They could kill me if they knew that I knew?" she asked softly. "Or turn me into a vampire?" Embry shrugged.

"Maybe… but now that I've imprinted on you, in a way you're part of the pack. There is a level of protection there, but we didn't want to push it since you don't live on tribal lands," he said. Mara chewed on her bottom lip.

"That man at the beach… he was a vampire, wasn't he? That's who was doing this," she said.

"Yea, but as I said, it's taken care of. He's dead," Embry said.

"But there are others in the area. That's why you all became wolves," she said. "And I suppose all over the world. Embry… no one is safe." Embry leaned forward towards her.

"The vampires that were in this area didn't kill anyone. We actually had a treaty with them, but now there's permanent truce. There are covens that don't hurt humans. They live off animal blood. And we make sure that everyone around Forks and La Push are safe," he said. "You don't have to worry. The Cullens are in Vancouver now, but they still keep an eye on the area. They have a home here, but they can only stay for several years at time before they start to raise suspicions."

"The Cullens? That's… is Nessie a vampire?" she asked, vaguely remembering someone call her by her full name. Embry chuckled.

"She's something completely different," he said. "Half vampire, half human." Mara's eyes widened.

"How is that possible?" she asked.

"Mara… I will tell you – everything. But for now, I think we should get to the station," he said, standing. "Chief Swan is sure to have all the final reports for you."

"Fine, but I want to know everything that you've been keeping from me," she replied. "Everything about vampires." Embry put his hands on her waist as he smiled down at her and pulled her closer.

"I promise… no more secrets," he said, kissing her.

"The others aren't going to be happy that I know, are they?" she asked.

"Probably not, but honestly, it was a matter of time," he said. "There was no way that you were going to stay in the dark. You are far too clever." Mara smiled slightly.

"I am a reporter," she replied as she stepped over to grab her bag. She then suddenly stopped, a look coming over her face. "The SIB agents… they weren't agents." She remembered them having unworldly pale skin and the strangest color of eyes.

"No, they are part of the Cullens' coven. We called them down when we ran into trouble tracking the rogue vampire. Demetri is a tracker," Embry explained. Mara's eyes widened as the realization hit her.

"Cecily Stewart," she said. Embry frowned. He hadn't mentioned Cecily's name in front of her. "The Times reporter that disappeared." She looked over at him. "She's a vampire."

"Yes. She was run off the road by some group she had been investigating. Would have died if the Cullens hadn't of taken her in and turned her," he said. Mara shook her head.

"God, this is a lot of information," she said.

"And I'll answer all your questions, but we should get going," he said.

"What about Jacob and the others? What will they do when they find out that I know?" she asked.

"Let me handle them."

"That is one massive bear," Mara said, staring at the photo.

"Early reports say it was rabid, but we're running tests to make sure," Charlie said. "I can send you the results once they're in if you need them." Mara glanced over at him, an eyebrow raised. She then took a deep breath and looked back at the photo.

"If I can make a suggestion," she said. "Might want to include in the report that you found traces of the last victim's blood in its teeth."

"Right," Charlie said.

"I'll call my editor and give him the news and then send off the last story. Could you send me digital copies?" she asked, waving the photo at him. Charlie nodded.

"Got it," he said. Mara started moving towards the door. "Mara…"

She stopped and looked over at him.

"Thanks," he said. "For understanding." She smiled.

"Like I said, it's my secret now too," she replied.

"And good luck back in Seattle. I'm sorry if this wasn't the big break you were looking for," he said. Mara shrugged.

"There will always be other stories," she replied. "I don't think I'll be kicked off the crime desk over this. Besides… I got a lot more out of it than I could have ever hoped for." Charlie nodded. "Take care of yourself, Charlie."

"You too," he replied. She then turned and walked out of his office. She would call Richard on the way back to the motel and then quickly write and send off the article. He would want her back in the city soon so they could go over the photos and layout. She still needed to pack.

"So that's it?" Mike asked. Mara stopped and turned to face him. "A rabid bear?"

"Yea, seems that's what it was," she said.

"Do not tell me you buy that. You saw the photos," he said, his voice dropping as he came near her.

"What do you think it was?" she asked, meeting his eyes. Mike shrugged, running his hands through his hair.

"I don't know… but I know that it wasn't a damn bear," he replied.

"Well… from what I've seen, that's what it was," she replied. "And that's what's going in my story."

"You're just going to believe him? Not even bother to look into it further?" Mike asked. Mara sighed.

"Sometimes things happen that just can't be explained," she said. "And we just have to accept that." Mike stared at her. "See you, Mike." She then turned and strode out of the station.

Mara was busy packing when Embry came by later after meeting with Sam and Jacob. It had taken a bit longer than he had expected. But it went about just as he expected.

Neither were happy, though Jacob looked impressed at how she put it together. But once it was all over and done with, Embry felt relieved. There were now no secrets. He and Mara could move forward from here with a fresh start.

But he wasn't expecting to come back to see her packing. It was already getting late and it was over three hours back to Seattle. He figured she'd stay another night and head back early in the morning. He had been planning to spend the night answering all her questions.

"You're leaving already?" he asked, his brow furrowed.

"Yea, Richard wants me back ASAP. I'll have to go straight to the Times," she said, glancing up at him. "I sent the article, but he wants to go over the evidence in person before deadline tonight. Just to make sure we've got everything taken care of."

"Did he buy it?" Embry asked.

"Barely," Mara said. "But he's going with it, so we're good there." Embry watched her as she continued to fold clothes and put them in the suitcase. She stopped and looked up at him.

"I know," she said. "I don't want to go either. I tried to convince him to let me stay the night since it's so late anyway, but he's making me come back." Embry sighed and stepped over to her, wrapping his arms around her.

"It's not for long. I'm moving there in a few months. And I'll come visit every weekend," he said. "Starting this weekend."

"Won't it be painful for you? Being away from me?" she asked, looking up at him.

"It's manageable," he said, smiling down at her. "Don't worry about me."

"Can't help it. You're off running around chasing vampires," she replied. "Speaking of which, how did that chat go?" Embry grimaced.

"Obviously they weren't happy, but in the end there's nothing they could do about it. You figured it out. You know. Can't undo that," he said.

"You mean there are no witches out there that can wipe my memory?" she asked, smirking.

"Not that I'm aware of," he said, kissing her.

"But they have to know that I won't tell anyone," Mara said, frowning. "I mean, who would believe me anyway?"

"I made that point to them as well," he said. "And they had to agree."

"Plus, they know about me… so in a way, it's all even," she said.

"It's all good," Embry replied. Though at the back of his mind, he couldn't shake the feeling that it wasn't. He still kept thinking about how easily they had caught the vampire.

"Well, as much as I would like to stand here in your arms all day, I do need to get on the road. Care to help me finish packing?" she asked.

"Sure," Embry said.

Mara sighed as she collapsed on the sofa in the living room. It was nearly midnight and she was tired, but her mind was too wired to go to sleep. She thought over everything that had taken place over the past few days. All the things she had learned.

Now that she was home and had the time to fully process it all, she was overwhelmed. It was a lot. But at least Richard had given her the morning off so she could sleep in. She had a feeling it would be a good few hours before she finally fell asleep with the way her mind had been whirling.

"Mar!"

She glanced over, seeing Katie walking down the hallway into the living room, dressed as though she had been out at a party. She silently cursed herself for giving her best friend a spare key.

"What are you doing here?" she asked, sitting up.

"You honestly thought I was going to wait until tomorrow to see you?" Katie said, grinning as she walked over to the island in the kitchen and grabbed a bottle of wine from a rack on the counter.

"It's late," Mara said, not getting up.

"Eh, I had an event so thought I'd come check-in and crash here. Besides, you said you have the morning off," Katie replied. "And we both know no one shows up at my office until at least noon after we do an event." She started pouring the glasses. "And I want to hear all about Embry."

Mara rolled her eyes as she made herself more comfortable and Katie walked over and sat next to her, holding the wine glass out.

"Was it a tearful goodbye?" she asked, grinning. Mara chuckled as she accepted the glass and took a sip.

"No, he's coming up this weekend," she said.

"Wow, already?" Katie asked, her eyes wide. Mara shrugged.

"Decided to try this whole 'go with it' thing you're always preaching to me," she replied.

"Who are you and what have you done with Mara Winslow?" Katie asked.

"Lot of things have changed," Mara said, putting the glass to her lips. More than you could possibly know…

"Do I get to meet Mr. Wonderful?" Katie asked.

"Suppose," Mara said. "To be honest, I haven't thought much about what we'll do."

"Well, I know your mom is eager to meet him," Katie said, smiling.

"Should have never introduced you to my mother," Mara muttered.

"Honestly Mara, we're both just happy you're dating," Katie said.

"Would it have been so bad if I turned out an old maid?" Mara asked, smiling.

"No, but you weren't helping yourself," Katie said. Mara sighed and nodded.

"There's something cathartic in being able to share things," she said. "I think that's what I like most about Embry… I can tell him things and he just… takes it in. Goes with it."

"See? I told you that you just needed to meet the right sort," Katie said. Mara stared at her best friend a few moments. She had always shared everything with her – save the bit about her sense. And she wished she could tell her everything now. But she couldn't. "I'm guessing you two didn't take any pictures together. I really want to see this guy." Mara rolled her eyes.

"Hold on, we're Facebook friends," she said, digging her phone out of her pocket as Katie squealed.

Even though everything had changed, some things would always be the same.

Almost to the end of this story. I have to admit that I've enjoyed writing Mara and Embry. I think they're rather cute together. Maybe in the future I could revisit this universe and do a one-shot or something… Though after I finish up the 20 other projects that I'm working on…

TravelSick – Thanks!

Thank you to everyone for reading and following!