Esme and Carlisle ventured out to Maine to start the ball rolling on our move. They returned a week later and announced that the house needed a lot of work. To fit all of us—Carlisle, Esme, Rosalie, Bella, Edward, Nessie, Jacob, Seth, Emmett, and I—there would have to be a massive renovation and addition put on the house.
Esme decided that it would be a bonding experience. "And if we do the renovations ourselves, it would take a quarter of the time."
I wasn't excited by the prospect until Emmett whispered in my ear. "I'm looking forward to seeing you hammer in nails shirtless. I heard the sun in Maine is hot…"
No, the Maine sun wasn't hot, but my mate's thoughts were…
Later, as I was busy packing up Emmett and my room I heard Seth's motorcycle screeching down the highway like a beast. Rosalie was insistent that she be the sole maintainer of his vehicles, so the unique tune-ups that Rosalie was famous for yielded a unique sound to my sensitive ears.
Seth didn't bother to knock at the door, as those pleasantries had eroded years ago, and bounded up the stairs three at a time.
"Sup?" Seth tapped his knuckles to mine and flung himself down on my bed. He froze for a minute.
I rolled my eyes. "Yes, the bed spread is clean," I muttered.
"Just checking," Seth responded. "I mean for how much you guys get busy, it would be easy to forget."
"We were at the beach last night for your information. And I don't forget, you know, the whole crystal clear memory thing!" I tapped my temple. Emmett and I had gone to the beach every evening since The Conversation. He and I would sit and talk about life, enjoy each other's company in various fashions, and then run back home before the morning beachgoers arrived. I was at home near the sea. This was odd given that I spent my first life smack dab in the middle of the continent. In the end though, I was happy that our new location was right on a large body of water—the Atlantic.
"How's the packing going?" Seth asked as he took stock of the boxes that surrounded me. "I'm all ready to go. Mom helped me pack last night. Didn't have too much stuff, which is good. Mom wants you to come over and say goodbye before we leave by the way."
I nodded. "I promise."
"Anyways, those movers that Esme got came and picked up my stuff this morning. When I signed the receipt it said it was going to a storage garage in Boise. I'm not sending my stuff into exile, am I?"
I laughed. "No, it's one of Jasper's arrangements. It would push the Forks gossip mill into full gear if it got out that your stuff, plus Jake's, plus ours were all going to the same location in Maine, at the same time. Another moving company will pick up your stuff in Boise and it will be waiting for you when we get out to Maine.
"Oh by the way, I have your new identity papers and a new cell phone. Do you want to have the talk? You can take notes, if you'd like, but you must destroy them within sixty seconds of reading them." I rustled through the myriad of boxes and pulled a shiny black lockbox to my hip.
"Oh wait, I'm I being indoctrinated into some secret spy agency now?" Seth goaded.
I bit my tongue stop from laughing. Jasper would be so mad at me if I didn't get my serious face on for this briefing… Oh geez, it was going to be secret spy agent between Seth and I. It's hard for me to be serious around him. We play off each other so easily.
"Shit," I said trying to hold my laughter in. I shook my head and took a seat on my bed with the lockbox between Seth and I.
I put my thumb on the biometrics reader and entered the nine-digit code on the keypad. The system recognized my identity and promptly unlocked. How advanced this lockbox was compared to the ones we used to have still astounded me.
After the Nate Farling debacle so long ago, Jasper purchased these new lockboxes at forty-five grand a piece. Not only was the lockbox made of titanium, it had a GPS tracking unit that a special security service could use to secure the lockbox in the event it was lost or stolen. The dealer didn't elaborate on the methods used to secure our property or its legality for that manner, but Jasper didn't inquire further however. What sold him, and in turn me, was the lockbox's document destruction mechanism. If the lock were compromised, an acid would be released within destroying the contents. We tested that acid on the myriad of documents that we would put in it: passports, cash, and IDs. All of them dissolved in the liquid quite beautifully.
This lockbox was for Seth exclusively.
"It's so shiny," Seth cooed reverently.
"Yes, well it's also your new life. Are you ready for this?"
"Is this like the sex talk? My mom beat you to that fifteen years ago," Seth joked.
"Well, it isn't like you put that talk to good use if you know what I mean!"
Seth glared at me. "Okay, let's do this. Talk."
I pulled out Seth's new cell phone and handed it to him. "I already put the family's new numbers in it. Your new number has Maine's '207' area code. Don't forget to let your Mom and Leah know the number has changed. Destroy the old phone."
Seth nodded.
"And here are a set of documents that substantiate your new alias, Seth Bruno Cullen." I handed Seth his new birth certificate, Maine driver's license, passport, social security card. It was now very difficult to forge these types of documents given the era of terrorism and identity theft we all lived in today. This difficulty meant that if you had a good forgery, it was more likely to be accepted simply by virtue of the belief that forging a passport was impossible. Being able to manipulate the very chemical and physical nature of objects came in real handy in the forgery business. Inserting a watermark, creating a reflective hologram, manufacturing forgery pen tester-proof paper… These were all child's play to me. There was literally no difference between a real and fake document.
"Bruno?" Seth eyed me suspiciously.
"It's a Catholic Saint's name. I'm Logan Dominic, named for Saint Dominic, patron saint of astronomers."
"I didn't know you were Catholic…" Seth whispered. "So who is Bruno the patron saint of?"
"Yeah, I was raised Catholic before the change. Saint Bruno is the patron saint of the Calabria region in Italy."
"Where's that?" Seth asked.
"Italy or Calabria?" I threw out jokingly.
"Calabria, you ass!" Seth punched my shoulder. It sounded like he punched a rock. "Fuck!"
"Break your hand, you big baby?" I said refusing to look at Seth's hand thereby giving him no satisfaction that I was concerned for his broken phalanges. After hearing the crunches of resetting bone, I knew I could continue. "To answer your question, Calabria is like the 'boot' of Italy. You know, the land mass that is kicking Sicily towards the western Mediterranean."
"Let me go and phase, then I'll kick your Sicily towards the western Pacific," Seth said angrily.
"I won't lie… That was horribly lame," I said through a toothy grin.
"Okay ANYWAYS, I'm named after a Catholic saint even though I'm not Catholic. What else do you got for me?" Seth said eying up the lockbox.
"You might want to memorize Saint Bruno's background. It might come in handy if someone asks you about your name," I cautioned. "But yeah, ANYWAYS here two more sets of documents for two more alias: Seth Allan Middleton and Adam John Smith.
"You'll need to memorize every detail about all three alias. You can develop their backgrounds on your own, but make sure you inform the family about the background. Like, what your first memory was, how you felt when Esme and Carlisle adopted you, and even what your new favorite color is. Emmett said it was easy to take on someone else's preferences after a move. For example, you think you know that Emmett's favorite color is green, right? Well, that is untrue. His favorite color is really blood orange. Go figure!
"These alias are your life the moment we leave Forks. For all intents and purposes, Seth Clearwater stays here in Washington. I hope you understand what you are giving up." I tried to be as sincere and honest as possible. This may be my first move as well, but I had ten years before being a Cullen to change alias, personality, and preferences. It was very handy on the hunt, human hunt that is.
"No, I understand Logan." The seriousness in Seth's voice overtook the room. I was convinced that he knew what was at stake. There was no need to push the point.
"Okay," I nodded. "Then this is the last thing. Read it when you're alone. Then allow Leah and your Mom read it too. You must memorize this and then burn it. We can discuss it if you would like, but I have a feeling that a discussion won't be necessary. This is secret agent spy to the ultimate. I just hope you understand and can appreciate the amount of trust my family is putting in you."
With a confused look on his face, Seth took the manila envelope from hands. He slid it into his leather jacket pocket. We didn't speak for a long minute.
Finally, Seth asked, "Wasn't your original name Middleton?"
He knew a lot about my past, but not so much about my first life. I nodded. "I can't use that name for at least another eighty years so I figured my best friend could use it."
"That's so touching," Seth said sarcastically.
"Ass," I spat.
"ANYWAYS, what's with this last one… Adam Smith… Like the inventor of modern economics?"
"See, you learned something when I tutored you!" I exclaimed. "Besides, the more obscure the name, the less likely it will be traced to you, Seth Clearwater."
"It's my life now," Seth said. "Obscurity."
"Obscurity is safe," I observed. "Plus it gives you the opportunity to reinvent yourself. It'll be fun. You can be whoever you wanted to be when you were a kid. Only in Maine, you'll be playing the part of a kid again."
"Honestly, I need to get out of this town. I'm not aging and people on the Reservation have noticed. Holy shit," Seth said exasperated. He rolled his eyes for good measure. "I must be a Cullen. Keeping the wolf thing a secret is as important as keeping the existence of your kind a secret. The normal world can no longer understand that beings such as we exist."
"Prophetic," I said sarcastically. "But it's nothing I haven't heard before."
"Shut up, douche." Seth took a pillow and threw it at my face with supernatural speed and precision.
I squished the pillow into a ball and threw it back at Seth. If I had thrown it a little harder than I did, I would have broken his nose. And Seth probably would have phased right there and then and purposely fucked up my packing process.
Seth stared at me through squished eyes.
"I knew I smelled doggie." Emmett rounded the corner into our bedroom. "Hey, Seth! Making my bed smell like wet dog are we?"
"Sounds like you've been spending all your time on my Rez so I figured I'd mark some new territory." Seth rolled around in the king-size plus bed.
"Well played, well played," Emmett commented. He turned to me and grabbed my hand. "Babe, the movers are here and Esme wants us to help direct them."
I listened downstairs and heard nine distinct heartbeats aside from Seth and Ness'.
Directing the movers was easy enough, but I became so annoyed by one of the movers when he commented on my assumed inability to move a wardrobe down the stairs. "Watch it son, you're going drop it!" he yelled as he barreled up the stairs. His large beer belly squished to the sides and it bumped one of the remaining picture frames from the wall. It came down crashing. I stared at the mover with disdain.
I had the briefest idea of dropping the wardrobe on the douchebag, but Emmett, knowing me better than myself, met the mover and I on the stairs and offered to 'help' us move the wardrobe the rest of the way. For being a hellion, when it came to pranks on humans, vampires, and me for that matter, he could be very mature… sometimes.
"Ever my savior," I whispered sarcastically to Emmett.
"You love me," was his only response.
"True," I quipped. Emmett, the fat mover, and I put the wardrobe down on the porch and Emmett and I stood back as the human struggled to push it the rest of the way.
Esme was behind in him a vampire second. "Don't scratch the feet! This is an antique!"
"Douche bag," I commented quietly.
"Language!" Esme chided out loud.
The fat mover gave Esme a perplexed look.
Meanwhile, Emmett winked at me, which got me all hot and bothered. He grabbed my hand and dragged me up to our bedroom. Seth was still on my bed thumbing through his lockbox and papers as Emmett and I walked in.
"Seth, Esme wants to know if you can move your motorcycle. It's in the way of the movers," Emmett lied coolly. I looked out the window to see that Esme had turned to face our bedroom. Her face scrunched with the same perplexity that the fat mover had given her only moments earlier. Seth, who couldn't see Esme from his vantage point, promptly agreed and left the room.
"Em, that was really smooth," I said as he closed the door and locked it. Emmett ran at vampire speed and closed the gap between us in a flash. His lips were on my own at equal speed. Rapturous applause exploded within me as Emmett showed me how much he loved me. I slid my hand beneath his sweatpants and grabbed a fistful of his cock. No underwear? Logan like. Emmett growled deeply as I ran my thumb over his tip. My thumb became slick with Emmett's anticipation. I pulled out of his sweats and put my thumb in my mouth. Savoring Emmett's essence made him growl in desire and frustration. I would draw this tortuous pleasure out.
I pulled away from him and smiled evilly. I slung my hand back to him and grabbed him at the waistband of his sweats.
Pulling him into our gigantic closet, he asked, "But babe, why don't we just, you know, on the bed?" He gulped down a pool of venom.
"The linens need to be washed. I love my best friend, but I don't love his scent. Especially when you and I are about to get busy," I reasoned. "That's a little too weird… even in this family."
"My mate, the ever rational," Emmett commented.
"Let's be irrational in the closet together," I said as I tugged on his sweats again.
The closet was empty, which gave us plenty of room to maneuver. I gave Emmett's sweats one last tug and they ripped right off him. I would have said "oops," but Emmett was keeping my mouth occupied with his own. My hands roamed his shoulders and then followed the muscled contours of his chest. I reached around and this time, grabbed double fistfuls of Emmett's dimpled ass. Whoever said he only had a dimpled smile? I pulled him into me, our cocks ground into each other, separated only by my jeans and briefs.
My mate was all mine in that moment. All mine.
...
The evening crept upon the Cullen household and the house itself had essentially been vacated of all things. All that remained were my family and a bed for Ness. As she slumbered, Edward called us all into the yard. The moon was out and it gave everyone around me a ghostly glow. It was their skin that was their crutch. It always gave away that they were different. Guilt washed over me because I knew that this would never be my crutch.
Edward obviously avoided the fit I was having within myself and spoke his concern. "I wanted to speak to you all apart from Ness, Jacob, and Seth. It has been a few weeks since we decided to move to Maine and though they do not show it, Seth, and especially Jacob, are worried about moving so far away."
Jasper interrupted Edward. "It is the logical thing to do. If we stay in the Pacific Northwest, it is that much more likely that we will run into those we have met here in Forks. Had we stayed in Forks for a shorter time span, we could've remained closer. This is the safest course of action.
"We cannot move to Portland for we risk running into Mike and Jessica Newton. Seattle is definitely out of the question, although Lauren Mallory will be in the state penitentiary there for another five years."
I had to agree with Jasper. Staying in this region was a bad idea.
Edward turned to Jasper. "I agree also, however can I assume their worry has been picked up by you?"
Jasper nodded.
Rosalie perked up and asked, "What do you propose Edward?"
"We have discussed in the past, but I think it might be a good idea to purchase a private jet."
Edward's suggestion blew me away. Private jet? That is a bit showy, wasn't it?
"Rock on!" Emmett exclaimed. "Finally, I can use my pilot's license!"
I turned to Emmett. "YOU have a pilot's license?"
"Yeah, babe! I got it when we were up in Alaska. Now that is the place that it wasn't weird to have a plane!"
"Learn something new about you every day, Emmett Cullen," I commented.
"Logan, both Jasper and I also have pilot's licenses," Esme added. That was even more shocking than Emmett. "But what kind of plane, Edward? It would have to fit at least the ten of us."
"Alice?" Edward asked.
We all looked to Alice, who was searching the future for the perfect purchase. She smiled widely.
"Understood, Alice," Edward said. "Because of the immediate need of the aircraft, where a typical order would take six months to a year to be delivered, we'll need to make a phone call tonight to Dassault Aviation. A Dassault Falcon 7X was supposed to be delivered to one of the country's major banks, but with all the political pressure from Washington about executive perks, it seems the bank is foregoing delivery. Dassault has a brand new plane with no owner. The problem is its cost: a little over fifty million dollars."
Carlisle jumped into the conversation before Jasper could. "Edward, that is a lot of money. Transferring that amount could set off red flags."
Jasper's concern was evident too and Edward was surely getting a mindful of caution from Jasper.
Alice chimed in after finishing her vision. "Both the bank and the manufacturer want this to go away quietly. Perhaps we could contact the bank and offer to buy it off them. That way we could take delivery from Dassault in Seattle, but it would have been the bank that made the transfer. We could just put the fifty million into the bank's… bank account. I'm sure the bank would agree to a secrecy clause as payment for us taking the plane off their hands."
Emmett was bored with the wheeling and dealing. "So can we get the plane?"
Edward looked to Carlisle. "If we can get the secrecy clause, would you agree? Would everyone agree? This is a family decision not because it is so expensive but because we are going to have to come up with a good cover story if it gets out that we have a private plane. This is for Seth and Jake's wellbeing. They are part of the family now, but they have family and responsibilities back here. It's the right thing to do. It's the right risk to take."
"Let's do it," Carlisle commanded.
Within hours and several phone calls and emails later, Edward tapped the enter key on the largest financial transaction the Cullen's had ever seen. Money might have been just a thing to us, but it still horrifying the amount of zeros that existed on the transfer.
"Let's keep it a secret from Jake, Seth, and Ness," Esme suggested. "It will be just a wonderful surprise for them."
I shook my head trying to get the zeros out of my head. Finally empty, my head turned to the side and my eyes fell upon a manila envelope lying alone on the cold, ceramic floor.
It was just waiting to be picked up by someone.
Someone who shouldn't read it.
Someone who couldn't read it.
I was going to kill Seth.