Wolves of the Pacific

by greenpeach20

In 1902, Renesmee Cullen grew tired of the tedious life of moving around with her family and decided to make the journey west as a mail order bride. Yet a chance encounter with a reddish brown wolf would change her life forever.

34. Chapter 34

Chapter 34

"Enjoy your day, Mrs. Jerry," Hailey said to yet another customer that had come in. They were never usually this busy so early. It was always in the afternoon when things picked up. He'd closed the door to the back to make sure no one ever saw Leah so she would be able to read in peace. They'd managed to start reading Rapunzel, though they'd not gotten very far. Leah kept reading out loud to practice whenever he stepped away, keeping her voice low so no one would hear her. But they only managed a page and a half of the story. "It was a lot busier this morning than usual," Hailey said when he returned to the back.

"It's a general store, Hailey. I'd be surprised if you didn't have any customers." Leah used a tiny piece of paper to save the spot where they'd left off. She looked at the clock and saw that it was 11:35. "I should probably go home," Leah said. "I imagine your uncle will return soon and I don't want him to catch you out of the shop."

"Don't worry so much about it," Hailey said. "What's the old man going to do? Fire me? I'm the only one willing to work for him." Leah looked up at him with a mildly irritated smile.

"You never know, Hailey. Don't be surprised if you come into work one day and there's a young boy here that replaced you and who isn't popping in and out as he pleases. You'll have no one to blame but yourself."

"Considering I sleep upstairs, it would be awfully hard for him to do that without me noticing." Leah was a little surprised.

"I didn't realize you lived here. I knew Mitch did, but I didn't realize you did too."

"No, I sleep upstairs," Hailey said. He reached out his hand to her to help her from her seat. Leah placed her hand in his and let him pull her up. Then he started leading her to the stairs in the kitchen and she followed him up to the first room facing the stairs. "This is where I sleep," he said before opening the door.

The inside was nothing spectacular. It was a rather tiny room with two windows, a tiny bed, a tiny open closet and a little table at the corner where there were a few books and letters strewn about. There were some blank pages on that table with a few pencils and a knife used to sharpen those pencils. She also saw 2 bibles, one in English and one in German. The one in German only appeared to be spelled wrong: Bibel. She walked over to it and opened it to see. It was a little bigger than the one her grandmother used to read, but it was relatively plain.

"Was this your father's?" Leah asked.

"Yes," Hailey said. "Another thing he left to me when he died."

"Oma had one like this, but it was smaller," Leah smiled fondly. Then she opened the book to take a look and see if she could remember any of it. "She read this to us at least twice before she passed away. We'd been on our third reading and we'd left off at Corinthians before she passed away. I remember her name was in the book." Suddenly, Hailey remembered something.

"It was in German?"

"Of course," Leah smiled. "Old as Moses. Or 'Alt wie Moses' as daddy used to call it. I think he said it was from when my grandparents got married." Hailey thought a moment longer, then patted Leah's back.

"Wait here a second," he said before walking away.

"What's wrong?" Leah asked.

"Nothing, just hold on a moment," he said as he left the room. He went across the small hall to his Uncle's room and let himself in. The room was just as modest as his, only slightly bigger indicating it was the master bedroom. He went to the spot where he swore he remembered seeing a bible in German. He'd asked about it and Mitch just said it had belonged to an old friend. He'd not thought about it again since then. He went to a chest in the room and forced it open, then rummaged through the things in there until he found what he was looking for. It was indeed smaller than the one he had, but it looked very similar. Hailey opened it to check if there was a name in there, and there certainly was.

Gott segnen das Brautpaar.

Möge Gott bringen euch groβe

Freude in den kommenden jahren.

Then, on the following page, was a small family tree. At the top of the tree were the names Evelyn Leitz and Günter Jagger. Below those names and descending down the tree were the names Hugo Jagger and Cynthia Jagger. Cynthia's side of the tree did not continue. However, next to Hugo's name, in a little spot on the tree, was the name Uileila. Then finally, below Hugo and Uileila, were Seth Jagger and Leah Jagger. Hailey smiled proudly and closed the chest before returning to his room. Leah was looking through his German bible, so she didn't see him walk back in.

"I found it," Hailey said, extending the bible to Leah. She looked at him, then the book, and her eyes widened. She accepted it and opened the first page. She saw the message she remembered, and she saw the family three she remembered. She couldn't immediately say anything. Her throat seemed as though it was closing.

"How did you-" Leah started, but she couldn't finish.

"I think Mitch took it after you and Seth ran away. He'd told me he'd retrieved it from an old friend and I thought nothing of it. But now that you mentioned it, I figured you were the only one it could possibly belong to." Leah started flipping through the pages. It was just as she remembered. The spot in Corinthians where her grandma had left off was even still folded. Her eyes started tearing up and she brought her hand over her mouth.

"Hailey," she whimpered.

"You deserve to have that back," Hailey said. "I'm sure Oma Jagger would've wanted you to have it and not my uncle." Leah looked at Hailey a moment, beside herself with gratitude. She never thought she'd see any of these things again as long as she lived. She closed the book before closing the remaining distance between her and Hailey by hugging him and then kissing him. Hailey gladly returned the kiss. It only lasted a moment before Leah took her lips away and buried her face into his chest.

"Danke," she finally said, tears now streaming down her face. She didn't even care how she was going to explain why she had it. She'd say she stole it or something. She was just happy to have something back that had belonged to her. Hailey kissed the top of Leah's head and held her tightly.

"Gern geschehen," Hailey replied, very proudly. He'd have her speaking German in no time. "I want you to practice reading with that," he finally said.

"I will," Leah said. The two of them rocked back and forth while Hailey took a moment to think about what they'd discussed earlier. If her family was growing suspicious, then she was right about them needing to be more careful. But no desirable possibility came to mind. They all involved lessoning the frequency of their meetings so as to not raise further suspicion and Hailey deemed that unacceptable.

"Is there anything your people need?" Hailey asked suddenly. Leah lifted her head to look up at him.

"I don't know what you mean."

"I know winter's just around the corner. Is there anything that we might be able to trade? It would certainly give us an excuse to see each other. And I can convince Mitch that we need something."

"What would you want besides the salmon?"

"What else do you have?" Leah thought long and hard a moment.

"I suppose we have plenty of rabbit furs. But we usually use those for making winter clothes. I don't know if my Uncle will be willing to trade that. We never have enough to spare."

"What about more salmon?"

"Whatever we'd had is jerky now, so I don't know if you'd want it. I might be able to collect some clams that we can trade," Leah suggested. Hailey thought a moment, then nodded.

"We could sell clams."

"You need to keep them in water, though. They have to still be alive when you cook them. And you have to wait until the shells open before you eat them. If they never open or they stay open after you tap them, then they're dead and you shouldn't eat them."

"I'll talk to Mitch about it," he said. "Maybe we can trade more fabric or something."

"If we tried to trade, we wouldn't see each other more than a few minutes," Leah warned. "And how would we even speak?"

"I'll throw a ball at you," Hailey joked and Leah laughed.

"Try not to throw it so hard this time, Mr. Dauer," Leah teased. Hailey chuckled and kissed Leah again. It was gentle and loving and they would have stayed that way, but they were rudely interrupted.

"God Damn it, Hailey!" came a yell from downstairs. They both jumped and Leah ran to the other side of the room while Hailey stepped out, relieved Mitch wasn't watching. He seemed to still be downstairs. "I swear to God, boy, if you're taking a nap up there, I'll ship you back home dragging behind my horse!" Hailey chuckled and glanced at Leah.

"Stay here," he whispered before leaving his room and going downstairs. "I wasn't sleeping, Uncle," Hailey said defensively as he came downstairs. "I spilled something on my shirt and I needed to change. Pardon me if I was thinking to present myself properly." When Hailey was downstairs, Mitch was pulling food out of paper bags.

"And what's this I'm hearing from Mrs. Marshal that she waited 10 minutes before you came to help her this morning?" Mitch said. "You're in a tiny town, Hailey, you should know by now you won't get away with anything."

"I was looking for something and I didn't hear her," Hailey replied. "I thought I'd made myself clear to the old bag, but evidently not."

"You watch your mouth, Hailey," Mitch said. "I got a letter from your mother and I'll have you know she's most displeased with your behavior. She's told me to tell you that you had best start acting properly or she's given me strict permission to ram by boot up your ass." From upstairs, Leah couldn't help but giggle. Downstairs, Hailey was smirking confidently.

"Uncle, I doubt you have the strength in your old age to put enough force behind your kick."

"Test my patience and you'll find out sooner rather than later," Mitch grumbled.

"How is mother doing otherwise?"

"She's doing fine so her letters say. Your sister and her husband are taking care of things and the money you've been sending is helpful. She says she's eager to see us for Christmas and expects you to have better news than you did last year."

"Better news of what?"

"Better news of a lady friend," Mitch said. "She's complaining that you're 30 and you're still not married."

"29," Hailey corrected.

"It's shy of 30 all the same. Honestly, Hailey, your aunt and I were married by the time I was 23. I don't see what's causing such a delay on your part."

"I've not found a woman to marry," Hailey said, instantly thinking of Leah. Somehow, he doubted marriage was an option for them. The thought made him a little sad. He'd have to talk to her about that. "Besides, would she rather I marry fast and be unhappy or in my time and be happy?"

"She wants grandchildren, Hailey," Mitch said. Hailey winced and, upstairs, Leah took a knowing, deep breath.

"She has Henry doesn't she?" Hailey said, referring to his nephew. "I'm sure she'll get another grandkid soon enough if she hasn't already."

"That's another thing she mentioned. You have another nephew now. His name is Charles."

"Well there you go," Hailey said. "She doesn't exactly have a reason to complain."

"That's not the point, Hailey. She wants grandchildren from YOU too. I'm sure if you were a little more cheerful and spoke to people a little more, you could find a nice girl to marry. What's about Bernice Marshal? Mrs. Marshal's youngest daughter is of a marrying age and I'm sure if you flashed that charm I know is in there somewhere, she might like you enough to put up with you for the rest of her life. Besides, it's about time you settled down. It'll do you some good."

"I'll get married when I damn well want to, Mitch," Hailey sighed heavily.

"Tell that to your mother and see how well she takes that," Mitch said.

"I'm perfectly capable of making my own decisions, Mitch. And I won't marry a woman just to make mother happy. If she wants me married so damned badly, she'll just have to wait until I meet the woman I want to marry. She can be patient. She's not as old as you are." Mitch took a deep breath to calm down.

"If you weren't my sister's little boy," Mitch mumbled before putting some things away. Then he saw the book of fairytales on the kitchen table and rolled his eyes. "Don't tell me you were reading when you're supposed to be working."

"Why not?" Hailey jumped to the explanation his uncle provided. "It's not as if I'm needed at the front when no one's there. And the stupid bell rings whenever someone comes in, so I can go up front when I'm needed. I don't see the harm in sitting down to read when I'm not working."

"You ARE working, Hailey. That's the problem."

"You're working and yet here you are out all day."

"I'm buying groceries!" Mitch yelled. "That's hardly the same thing as lounging in the back not paying attention with your head filled with children's stories."

"What are you so grumpy for, Uncle?" Hailey said. "You don't usually come home guns a blazin'."

"I don't usually come home after being told by four people that you were in the back with the door closed while I was gone either."

"I came forward when I heard them," Hailey said and then sighed. "You're complaining more than usual, Uncle. Is something wrong."

"Yes, I'm burdened with a lazy nephew." Hailey chuckled and walked to Mitch to pat his back.

"I'm not lazy, Uncle. I conserve my energy."

"You're lazy," Mitch said. "I have more groceries to bring in. I expect you to have what's here put away by the time I get back." Mitch finally walked away and as he left, Hailey inched closer and closer to the stairs. When Mitch was out the door, Hailey ran up the stairs back to his room where he saw Leah still waiting.

"I'll get you outside. Wait for me and I'll come out to take you home."

"I can walk home, Hailey," Leah said.

"We don't have time for you to argue with me, Leah. Just wait outside for me." Hailey left the room first and Leah followed behind, hurrying to the back kitchen door and leaving just in time for Mitch to miss her. As Hailey closed the kitchen door, Mitch was coming in with more bags and Hailey rushed to put things away.

"I thought I said have all this put away by the time I get back," Mitch said.

"I never said I would," Hailey said. Hailey put a loaf of bread in the basket on the counter and then walked past Mitch towards the front of the store.

"Where are you going?"

"I'm going to get the horse and cart back in the stable," Hailey said.

"No, put these away first and THEN go return the horse and cart. One thing at a time, boy, one thing at a time." Hailey turned back to put away groceries and signed a heavy sigh.

"You call me a boy yet press me to marry and make children," he mumbled.

"I'm not the one pressuring you. That's all your mother. All I'm saying is it might do you some good to have a woman that will kick you in the butt and set you straight." Hailey smiled and, again, instantly thought of Leah.

"I have to meet her first, Mitch," Hailey finally said. He put away the last of the canned food and started going towards the front again.

"I'll talk to Mrs. Marshal," Mitch said. "Perhaps you and Miss Bernice could officially meet. And if you're nice to her, she might just like you."

"Don't bother, Mitch," Hailey said as he grabbed the knob of the front door. "I'm a grown man and I don't need you trying to set me up on blind dates. I'm putting the cart away and getting the horse settled." Hailey closed the door behind him and did just that. Leah was leaning against the stable waiting for him as he'd told her to. "Let me put the cart away and then we'll get you home."

"I told you," Leah said, trying to be stern, but not managing to hide her laugh.

"Told me what?"

"'I'm not lazy, I conserve my energy'? You're lucky he didn't fire you right there," Leah giggled. "You heard the man. He's ready to send you back home dragging behind the horse."

"You heard all that, eh?" Hailey laughed while he put the cart away.

"Yes, Hailey, I heard everything." Hailey looked at Leah a moment after he'd finished putting away the cart.

"When I said I didn't meet anyone worth marrying-"

"You don't need to defend yourself, Hailey," Leah said, still smiling. "Honestly, what else could you have told him? 'I've met someone, but no one would ever let us get married'? I'm not mad at you for saying what you said. You spoke honestly."

"I spoke defensively," Hailey corrected. "Defensively doesn't mean honestly." Leah looked at him strangely as he got onto the horse and helped Leah get on before they started the ride back. Hailey didn't bring the horse to a gallop, though. They walked slowly.

"You going to make the horse run?" Leah asked, noticing he wasn't speeding up.

"Not right now. I'd rather spend a little more time with you before I have to say goodbye." Leah smiled and rested her head against Hailey's back. Putting the reigns in one hand, Hailey freed his right hand so he could rest it on Leah's thigh the way he had last time. Leah didn't mind.

"Won't your uncle be upset? You keep this up, that horse may be dragging you by your balls." Hailey laughed loudly and Leah just smiled.

"We'll see about that, Miss Jagger," Hailey said, squeezing her thigh lovingly.

"I'm telling you, Hailey, one day he won't put up with it anymore," Leah teased.

"Does that upset you because you're concerned or does that upset you because it means I would return to Port Angeles?" Leah stopped smiling and the hand that held his shirt tightened a little.

"Both I suppose," she answered honestly.

"You have nothing to worry about, Leah. If the man wants to get rid of me, he'll have to force me. Unless you would ever come with me if I did leave."

"I can't do that, Hailey," Leah said. "You know I can't."

"You're right," Hailey said with a sigh. If nothing else, so long as they were here, she could still see her family and be near them. If he took her with him to Port Angeles, she'd never see them again. "I'm sorry to mention it."

"Don't be," Leah said. "It's a reasonable suggestion. Though I doubt it would go well. I suspect if your mother found out about this, she wouldn't be too pleased."

"She'd have a horse drag me by my balls," Hailey said, attempting to joke. Leah laughed, but it was brief. "You have to understand, Leah."

"I do," Leah said with the slightest hint of bitterness. "I'm a second class citizen." Hailey said nothing. "See? Even you can't think of something funny to say about it."

"I'd never joke about that, least of all with you. Besides, I'm guilty of having much the same opinion. Hell, I still think that way in some respects."

"Bigot," Leah mumbled, though never retracting her head from his back.

"I won't deny it," Hailey said. "I like you, though."

"I suppose that counts for something. I suppose it's true that love is blind. Stupid too."

"Blind, deaf and dumb," Hailey agreed. "But what can you do?"

"I tried doing something earlier."

"You see how well that worked," Hailey teased, squeezing Leah's thigh again.

"Indeed," she smiled again. Still holding the bible tightly, she wrapped her arms completely around him and hugged him tight. Hailey brought up his free hand, took hers and brought it to his lips to kiss it. Then their fingers intertwined and remained that way. "Thank you again for giving me Oma's book."

"I'm happy I remembered it," Hailey said. "Will Seth remember it, do you think?"

"He will," Leah said. "We would look at it after Oma passes away. Daddy never read it, though. It was strange. Every time he opened it and saw the message and family tree, he would get so angry."

"Why?"

"I don't know," Leah said. "I asked mother and she told me it was best not to worry about it. Daddy just wasn't happy to see his father's name and that's all she would ever say."

"Interesting," Hailey said. "So you know nothing about when your father lived in Germany?"

"Not a thing," Leah said. "All we knew is he used to live in Nuremburg, Oma and grandfather had separated for one reason or another and daddy and his sister lived with grandfather before he died and they all came to America."

"What year did your father come to America?"

"I can't remember. It was after the war. That much I know."

"Civil war you mean, right?"

"Yes," Leah nodded. "That's really all I know. I just know he had it rough in Germany and that's all the more detail daddy would go into. He refused to speak of Germany. It always made him upset to even think about it."

"Hmm," Hailey said. He squeezed Leah's hand and then kissed it again. "I wonder if Mitch would know."

"I'm not sure. He might. If he tells you, would you tell me?"

"Of course," Hailey nodded. "I'll bring it up. I'm curious myself."

"I'm sure there's a reason daddy wouldn't speak of it. But I wish I knew what happened. I could understand if I just knew."

"I'll see what I can milk out of Mitch. Until then, you practice reading that bible like a good Christian woman, Frӓulein Jagger." Leah smiled and kissed Hailey's back.

"Ja Herr Dauer," Leah said. Hailey smirked and kissed Leah's hand again. When they were about a mile from the village, Hailey swung his leg over the horse's neck and dropped to the ground and then helped Leah down. "Thank you for the reading lesson, Mr. Dauer. Whatever we managed to get through, anyway."

"If I were to trespass this Sunday, would you come to reprimand me?" Hailey asked.

"Not this Sunday," Leah said regretfully. "We should put some time between that, especially given you had me for a few hours today as well."

"The following Sunday, then. And I'll speak to Mitch about trying to arrange another trade, even if it's only to see you again." Leah smiled as Hailey brought his face down to give Leah a kiss. "You still have the pocket watch I gave you, right?"

"Yes, I have it," Leah said.

"We'll do this again soon enough. When we do, I'll meet you here at 10:15 again."

"Not the following Monday," Leah warned.

"No," Hailey said. "The Wednesday after, however. I must insist on that." Leah smiled and kissed Hailey again.

"If you insist." Leah kissed him one more time before she turned to make her way back to the village.

"Ich liebe dich," Hailey said as she walked away. Leah turned to look at him and smiled.

"Ich liebe dich auch," Leah answered back and Hailey smiled at her.

"You've been practicing, Frӓulein Jagger."

"I have a good teacher," Leah said. "Auf wiedersehen Herr Dauer."

"Auf wiedersehen, Frӓulein," Hailey replied back. Leah smiled again and waved goodbye with her free hand before she finally returned to walking away. He didn't get back on the horse until Leah was out of site and on her way back.

Leah returned and held the book behind her back. This time, when she returned, everyone looked at her. They immediately returned to their task, but they all looked. It made Leah feel self-conscience. Jacob and Sara seemed to momentarily argue before Jacob came right up to Leah. Instantly, he saw that she looked very content, whether she intended to appear that way or not.

"So how's the Meat Monger and his lackey?" Jacob asked and Leah smiled a little.

"Fine, I suppose. Mr. Dauer taught me more German." Then she revealed the book she had. "He also gave me this."

"What's that? A bible? It's spelled wrong, isn't it?"

"It's in German," Leah said. Jacob took the book without asking and skimmed through it. It was strange to look at compared to English. Then he came to the first pages and saw the hand written note and the family tree. He saw Leah's and Seth's names.

"This was yours?"

"It was Oma's," Leah corrected.

"Oma?"

"It's a way to say grandmother. It was the bible she and my grandfather were given when they got married."

"How was he able to get this?"

"Apparently, Mitch took it after Seth and I ran. He'd kept it all these years and Hailey noticed, so when I'd mentioned it, he gave it to me."

"Awfully thoughtful of him," Jacob said, then handed the book back. "How do you plan to explain it?"

"I stole it," Leah said bluntly. "I found out.." Leah stopped a moment, "one way or another, that the Meat Monger had my grandmother's book, so I went to take it back and I've succeeded. That's why I've been gone all this time. That's my story and I'm sticking to it."

"Convincing," Jacob said. Jacob's glance passed Leah's neck and as it did, he noticed the slightest hint of a little red spot peaking through the collar of her dress. "You may want to make sure mother doesn't see that," he said, pointing at the hickey. "Or will you just tell her the Meat Monger's lackey poked you really hard? Not that it would be too far from the truth."

"There was no 'poking'," Leah said pointedly. "We…..nothing serious happened. That's all you need to know is that nothing serious happened."

"Sure, sure," Jacob said as he waved his hand dismissively. "I take it that means you'll still continue to see him?" Leah was quiet a moment and looked at the ground. Then she took a deep breath and looked at Jacob again.

"Yes," Leah answered bluntly.

"At least you're finally being honest," Jacob said. "I can speak up on your behalf and make this easier. Maybe if we tell them, mother might permit the two of you to see each other under certain conditions."

"Like what?" Leah asked in a condescending manner.

"I would imagine with me or your brother around to keep an eye on the situation for one," Jacob said.

"Jacob, I'm not going to have you or Seth follow me around while I'm with Hailey. Besides, he's teaching me German and we're reading together."

"Renesmee and I did much the same thing. In fact, the first time we ever made love was after reading Othello."

"That didn't need to be shared, Jacob," Leah said.

"I'm not going to nag you about it, Leah. Just try to be more discreet if you really have no intention of being honest with mom and dad."

"We discussed that. I actually wanted to speak to you about something concerning that."

"And what might that be?"

"Hailey suggested we trade sooner. I suggested we trade clams for some type of material or something. It seems like a reasonable arrangement either way." Jacob shrugged.

"You get that all set up and I'll permit it," Jacob said. "I'll pretend I'm surprised to see them."

"Good," Leah said as she walked away.

"Oh," Jacob said, "and by the way, Leah. Mom wants to talk to you about all this disappearing you've been doing. It's making her worry."

"What did you tell her?"

"I told her that it wouldn't be right to interfere with your life but that I'd gladly start following you around if it puts her mind at ease."

"Well don't and say you did," Leah said.

"Keep that book out of site," Jacob said to Leah as she walked away. And, as Jacob said, Sara immediately ran to Leah to talk to her. Leah kept the book out of site and did her best to put Sara's mind at ease, insisting that there was nothing to worry about and she was simply spending time outside the village for some much needed personal time and exercise.

Hailey finally returned to the shop well past thirty minutes later. When he came back, Mitch popped out already beet red with irritation. The man didn't even start yelling yet. Truth be told, he was simply too angry to yell at first. Instead, he belted out words that he attempted to make into sentences a little at a time until he managed to make it a coherent thought.

"Where the hell did you run off to? Is this what you call, 'putting away the cart and horse'?! You've been gone for forty minutes! Where were you?!"

"I went for a ride. I needed some time to myself."

"Damn it, Hailey, to hell with time to yourself! Your mother sent you here to help me with the shop, not to flounce around like you're at a God Damned country club! Now you get your ass in there and get to work or I'll dock you a day's pay! You're lucky I'm not doing it already!"

"Yes, Uncle," Hailey said, coming down from the horse and placing him in his stable. "You really need to calm down. All this yelling isn't healthy at your age."

"You're not healthy at my age! Now get in there and get to work!" Mitch went back inside and slammed the kitchen door while Hailey followed slowly behind. He needed to take a moment to just laugh a little before going inside.

Deciding it was best to let his Uncle decompress and calm down, Hailey let Mitch go about his business and did his own job without a word. By the time they closed the shop and it was time for dinner, Mitch had calmed down considerably. To make things easier, Hailey started dinner.

"You're cooking?"

"Consider it an apology for my behavior," Hailey said as he got some barley and spices ready. "I also wanted to suggest something to you."

"What might that be?" Mitch asked hesitantly.

"Well, I noticed last we were there that the Quileutes make a habit of hunting clams and such. Perhaps we could procure something of value to trade with them for those clams. I'm sure it would make us a nice profit. Give it to the grocer like we do the salmon, we get a nice little cut of it. I think that would be a good idea." Mitch stared at Hailey a moment a little dumbfounded.

"You're suggesting that we go to the tribe unannounced with goods to trade for something we don't usually trade? I don't know if this has occurred to you, Hailey, but the Quileutes are not ones that like surprises. Take it from someone who's been on the wrong end of Jacob's hand a few too many times."

"Just hear me out," Hailey said. "Maybe we can get more fabric. They liked that shit! If we get enough, especially warm fabric they can use for winter, I'm sure we could easily convince them to give us plenty of clams."

"You're awfully eager for this little business transaction," Mitch said.

"I just know a good business idea when I have one," Hailey replied confidently.

"Ahuh," Mitch said, then sighed. "Is there something going on that you want to tell me about?"

"Why do you say that?"

"Damn it, boy, stop treating me like I'm stupid. If there's something going on with Leah, then I want to you to tell me and I expect you to tell me this instant."

"You're being absurd, Mitch," Hailey said, doing his best to be contemptuous. "There's not a damned thing going on between her and I. The woman bugs me when I go fishing. Nothing special."

"Yes, and you've been fishing much more frequently lately. Then she walks all the way here by herself no less to return a damned box. Honestly, Hailey, that's a little bit of a stretch to assume she did that just to make sure you wouldn't go to a stupid bluff anymore, especially since you're doing the exact opposite."

"Well, that's exactly what happened," Hailey said. "I don't control what she chooses to do with her free time. It's not as if she has a job or a life to keep her busy. So she has nothing to do but return my things which, like I said, is the least she can fucking do all things considered."

"You have a job to keep you busy and you still manage to flounce around doing pointless things," Mitch bit back.

"All I did is suggest we try a new trading agreement that might make things just a little nicer around here, but if that idea is not appreciated, then I will drop the subject," Hailey said, staring at the pot of water as if thinking it would begin to boil from his rage.

"Alright then," Mitch said and sighed heavily. "Maybe next we see them, we'll broach the possibility, but until then, I'm not risking going there uninvited. I will not do it."

"Alright," Hailey said and took a deep breath. They didn't speak again until the barley was finally ready about an hour later. Hailey warmed some bread in the oven and served them each a bowl of what was basically porridge with garlic and onions and a slice of bread. "Actually," Hailey finally said when they were seated. "Since we were on the subject of Miss Jagger, I was wondering if you might not tell me a little about her father."

"Pardon?" Mitch said, raising an eyebrow. "Why?"

"I'm curious," Hailey said. "You said yourself the man was a heavy drinker and he thought poorly of Germany. I thought maybe you could shed some light on that. Tell me a little story over dinner as it were."

"It's not a dinner time story, Hailey," Mitch said. "Regardless, I'd prefer we not discuss that. The man suffered greatly in his childhood and that's all that's relevant. What happened to him is no one's business, least of all yours."

"What could have possibly happened to this man in his youth that would push him to drink in later years?"

"It's not your business, Hailey. I don't know why you're even asking."

"Because I'm curious and we never talk about anything interesting. Tell me something interesting."

"You want to know something interesting? I found out that, when there are two full moons in one month, that's called a 'Blue Moon'. It's extremely rare, hence the figure of speech. That's interesting."

"Honestly, Mitch, you're one of the only people that doesn't gossip in this town. The one time I actually want to gossip about something, you're puckering up your asshole tighter than a snare drum." Mitch dropped his spoon into his bowl suddenly, a little horrified by what Hailey just said. He eventually picked back up his spoon and swirled the mash around to re-mix it.

"You put too much onion in here," Mitch said bitterly.

"I'm trying to engage in an interesting conversation and you're talking about fucking onions." Mitch suddenly slammed his fist onto the table making Hailey jump.

"Damn it, Hailey, it's not 'interesting', it's tragic! That man suffered more than your sheltered little mind could ever imagine! It's bad enough you seem to have no respect for the living. You should at least have some respect for the dead!" The two of them stared at each other a moment. Hailey was breathing to calm his stunned heart and Mitch was trying to recover from getting so viciously angry.

"He was a good friend of yours right? Hugo was?"

"Yes," Mitch said after taking a deep breath. "He was a very good friend. I did everything within my power to help him. I wasn't able to and now my friend is dead, his wife is dead, and two children are orphaned. I would prefer, Hailey, that you never bring this up again."

"Enlighten me, Uncle. What did this man go through that haunted him so? I really am interested. No one in town knows what happened. All anyone knows is one day the man was fine, the next he fell into a drunken fit and the day after that he and his wife were dead and his children had run away. No one knows why."

"Because Hugo never TOLD anyone why," Mitch barked. "He told me after we'd become friends because he wanted to get the past off his chest. He told Uileila because he wanted her to know and love him good bad and otherwise. But we are the only ones he ever told about this. He did that for a reason."

"Why is that?"

"What would you do if you lived a life so horrible that it could have killed you? Would you advertize it to all the world or would you try to put it behind you?"

"It sounds like the man ran away from it more appropriately and you see how well that went. He murdered his wife and nearly killed his children."

"That man adored his children," Mitch spoke defensively on Hugo's behalf. "When he drank, he was no longer of his right mind. He would remember things he didn't want to remember and those memories would haunt him. We begged him not to drink anymore and when Uileila came around, he did stop."

"Why did he start again?"

"I don't know," Mitch said, getting a little sad. "I don't know why. He wouldn't tell me. He just kept saying 'it won't go away'. I don't even know what that means."

"Mental illness?" Hailey asked.

"No," Mitch said adamantly, then suddenly retracted. "I don't know. Post traumatic stress perhaps. I wouldn't wish his life on my worst enemy."

"What happened?" Hailey asked calmly. Mitch and Hailey looked at each other while silence filled the room. Despite his flippant method of asking, he wanted to ensure he would get an answer. For Leah, he'd get the answer one way or another. Mitch kept poking at his porridge without saying a word and Hailey never broke eye contact, doing much the same with his food.

"He had a rough life back home," Mitch finally said. "What more do you want me to say?"

"I wonder what those hardships were. Whenever father spoke of Germany, he had nothing but glowing things to say."

"Well, your father also came from a good family," Mitch said. "A middle class family from Berlin no less if memory serves me right. Hugo wasn't so lucky."

"So he was just poor?"

"That was the least of his problems," Mitch said. Mitch stared at Hailey again as trying to tell him to drop it, but Hailey never faltered and Mitch signed heavily. "Hugo's parents separated when he and his sister were very young. The law wasn't on her side, though, so their father ended up being the one to take them in."

"Why wouldn't their father just allow Mrs. Jagger to keep them?"

"I couldn't tell you," Mitch said. "The man wasn't in his right mind."

"So mental illness in the family isn't terribly uncommon?" Hailey asked.

"I never said Hugo suffered a mental illness. His only illness was a hateful father that haunted him the rest of his life and he resorted to drinking. Hugo's father was a monster."

"Why do you say that?" Mitch took another deep breath and rubbed his face.

"I don't know why you're insisting I tell you."

"You speak so fondly of Hugo, yet we're talking about a man that murdered his wife and nearly killed his two children in a drunken rage. The two hardly match."

"When Hugo was sober, he was a good man. He adored those children and he loved Uileila more than I can offer justice for. She changed him for the better at first. Hugo had a drinking problem when he first arrived here. Then he went hunting for deer one day and came back to town insisting he saw an angel. We had always known about Uileila and at first I'd tried to convince him not to see her. We all had. We warned him that an Indian simply wasn't a proper woman to marry. But he ignored us and she was changing him for the better. He stopped drinking, he was a harder worker, he became happier and he seemed to flourish at last. None of us had the heart to tell him not to marry her after she'd brought all that good out of him. So the priest at the time married them one day and everything was fine."

"Do you know what changed that?"

"No," Mitch said. "It was shortly after his mother passed away, but he didn't seem so heartbroken over her death that it would make him start drinking again. I suppose I was wrong. But they were happy for so long and Hugo stood by Uileila. He'd defend her to anyone and walk to hell and back for her."

"What did his mother think of her?"

"She adored her," Mitch said. "Uileila and ole Eve were instant friends. She was more upset when she passed away than Hugo was. Leah was crushed about it too."

"I bet," Hailey said, remembering the smile Leah had when she spoke of her Oma.

"Seth was too young when she passed away. He didn't understand that she'd died. He kept asking why they were burying Oma and after the funeral, he would ask when Oma was coming back. Broke my heart that did."

"How old was he when Hugo died?" Hailey asked, despite already knowing the answer.

"That boy was six," Mitch said. "Leah was 11. After they ran away, everyone was petrified. We assumed the worst when we saw Uileila and Hugo dead and we searched high and low for the children. But when he found out they'd run back to the tribe, most came to the conclusion someone from the tribe committed the murders and kidnapped the children, so we all went to the reservation with fire and pitchforks ready to hang all of them. But when we arrived, they refused to give us back the children and Leah admitted that she was the one that Hugo had killed her mother and that she killed Hugo. Everyone was outraged. They blamed Leah and said it was her Indian blood that made her do what she did. I remember someone saying she killed her father in cold blood. I told that person to watch their tongue as I recall. Ultimately, I convinced them to leave Seth and Leah with their tribe. But I know that Leah did not kill her daddy in cold blood. That girl loved her father. I almost cried myself when I saw Leah." Mitch started to get a little choked up. "That poor girl. I don't know if she realized it, but she didn't stop crying the whole time we were there. Her eyes were red and her cheeks were red. And Seth; he was squealing the whole time asking for Uileila. No child should ever have to see what those two saw."

"What would possess Hugo to do what he did? I understand he was drunk, but to murder his wife?"

"Hugo was not in his right mind when he killed Uileila. Sober, that man wouldn't hurt a hair on her head. I remember the first time he'd had a drink in over 13 years. He'd been mean to Uileila and had hurt her. That's what he'd said anyway. He started crying and was ashamed of himself. He said he was scared that Uileila would leave him if he didn't change." Hailey recalled as much based on what Leah had said and Uileila was right to make the threat.

"Can you blame the woman? If he hit her, then of course she would threaten to leave."

"I never said he hit her," Mitch said defensively. Hailey looked at Mitch realizing he'd said too much. That was something Leah had told him.

"I assumed that's what you meant," Hailey said. It didn't occur to him Hugo had not said he'd hit Uileila.

"No," Mitch said with a sigh and rubbed his face. "No, he did hit her. He confirmed that to me. It was more yelling though. Either way, he swore he would never do it again and for a while he didn't. But he was unnerved and irritable. When he started drinking again, it had brought back a lot of horrible memories and they just wouldn't go away."

"What memories?" Hailey asked. These were all things Leah already knew and he was tired of dancing around the problem. Mitch rubbed his face again before resting his arm on the table and poking his food again.

"Hugo's father took them in after he and his wife separated. The short answer is the man was abusive. The long answer is the man was depraved."

"How so?"

"The things Hugo revealed to me," Mitch said, shuttering. "No child should suffer like that."

"What happened?" Mitch looked at Hailey a moment, extremely distressed.

"This is to remain between you and me," Mitch said. "Hugo told me and he told Uileila. But he never wanted Leah and Seth to know. I don't think his mother knew either."

"What happened that he couldn't tell his children?"

"Horrible things," Mitch said. "First of all, the man was a taxidermist. Not an offensive profession. It was his hobbies that were offensive and grotesque. Hugo had vivid memories of his father forcing him to help exhume dead bodies."

"His father was a grave robber?"

"Among many things. He would experiment on the bodies. According to Hugo, his father had a tiny shed outside where he would keep them and it reeked of death. It was where he kept the bodies of animals he'd been tasked to stuff, but he would leave the human bodies he'd stolen in there as well, exposed and rotting. He remembered being able to smell it within a mile or so of the house, that's how bad it was."

"Did they not have neighbors that complained of this?"

"No," Mitch said. "Their father kept them planted in the middle of nowhere. Their father was the only human interaction Hugo and his sister had for many years. The few times they were allowed to see their mother, they were sworn to not speak a word of the things they saw and what was going on in that hellish home. If they disobeyed, they would suffer greatly. Not that they didn't suffer enough as it was."

"Did their mother never try to keep them?"

"Of course, but their father never tolerated it. Hugo remembered an incident where they visited their mother. As their father instructed, they said nothing of what was going on and insisted their father was allowing them to go to school and teaching them his craft. Yet she evidently discovered that Hugo and his sister were terrible readers and knew nothing of the bible. That's what offended her the most from what I understand. When their father returned to take them back, she demanded he leave them with her, but he would not allow it. They argued, or so Hugo tells me, and it ended with his father beating his poor mother until she was limp on the ground. He'd not killed her obviously, but she was incapacitated long enough for Hugo and his sister to be forced to return with their father. There was nothing the authorities could or would do and nothing ever came of that."

"It's beginning to make sense," Hailey shuddered.

"I've told you nothing," Mitch said. "This only scratches the measly surface. From what Hugo told of this incident alone, their father was convinced that Hugo or his sister must have revealed to their mother what he was doing. So he punished them both severely. Hugo said his sister had been locked in the….." Mitch took a moment to think. "I can't remember what he used to call it. I know it was a word for house and body if I recall correctly."

"Körper Haus?"

"Yes," Mitch said. "Die Körper Haus he used to call it. His father locked his sister in Die Körper Haus for four days with no food or water. Hugo he did far worse to. He tied Hugo to a chair so he couldn't run and he beat him with an iron pan until he lost consciousness. He was still tied to the chair when he woke up and his father wouldn't untie him. He was left there starving and dirty until his sister was finally released and was able to free him."

"Sweet fuck," Hailey said in awe and horror.

"Several times, their father would lock one of them in the closet, again with no food water, or means of sanitation. The house smelled retched and was never clean. He remembered food being hard to come by in the house. Evidently his father would keep all the food under lock and key and they were not to eat until he said so. So if he ever forgot or lost track of the time, the children went hungry. Hugo recalled saying he was hungry, so his father cooked him lunch, then placed the hot pan on Hugo's bare legs and made him eat directly from the pot. He made far too much food and forced Hugo to eat every single morsel. He would not remove the pot from his legs until he did. When Hugo couldn't do it and threw up most of the food, his father forced him to eat that too. Hugo ended up falling asleep in the kitchen with the pot on his lap. Evidently, his sister made the same mistake at one point or another and she suffered the same punishment."

"And they never told anyone about this? Not even their mother?"

"Never said a word," Mitch shook his head. "That man would beat Hugo and his sister with bottles, lock them in Die Körper Haus or the closet, force feed and starve them. Hugo even remembered, when he was young, times when his father would grab his sister by her hair and drag her to their room and lock the door. His father would be locked away in there for upwards of 30 minutes. Sometimes he would hear screaming, sometimes just crying, but eventually he wouldn't hear anything."

"What would he do to her?" Hailey asked. Mitch didn't answer at first. But he did take a very deep breath and closed his eyes a moment.

"Hugo wasn't sure," Mitch said. "His sister wouldn't tell him. But then, I don't think it's a stretch to figure out what that man was doing." Hailey felt himself gag a little at what Mitch was implying.

"How did they get away? You said their father passed away?"

"No, Hugo killed him," Mitch said frankly. "As he grew, he started to realize he was as big as his father. He realized he could stand up to him. So he would try to. But his efforts were usually thwarted with worse abuse. His father stabbed him in the leg once when they argued. Hugo's lucky his father only stabbed his leg. He even showed me the scar. It never went away. Eventually, Hugo couldn't take it anymore. But most of the time he was too weak to fight his father. So he waited when it was night one day. He told his sister to stay in their room and to not make a sound. He told her to stay in there no matter what she heard and he locked her in their room. Then Hugo went to his father's room and stabbed him. He wasn't sure how many times, but he remembered doing it over and over again. He remembered the smell and he remembered his father just wouldn't die no matter how many times he stabbed the man in the chest. He sliced the man's throat and stabbed him in the eye for good measure. Then he went to get his sister and they ran. But he wanted to be sure his father would die, so he set the house and the little shack in the back on fire. Then they ran to their mother and claimed their father had died. According to him, he and his sister swore they would never speak of it to anyone again."

"Jesus," Hailey muttered. "How did he function in society after all that?"

"Sheer determination. He never wanted Leah and Seth to know. He wanted to keep this from them. He didn't want them to be burdened with his tragedy."

"Doesn't look like it worked," Hailey said, finally taking his eyes off Mitch and staring at his food. He didn't notice the bitter tone to his voice when he spoke, but Mitch certainly did.

"That man did what he could," Mitch defended. "There. Now you know what happened. And I expect you to never speak of this again."

"Yes, Uncle," Hailey said as he took a bite of his food. He'd been tasting his food a lot better now. Strange that food was so much more pleasant when one could actually taste it. Though, sadly, he wasn't enjoying his dinner very much at all at the moment.

After reassuring Sara, Leah returned to her tent and wound up staying there the rest of the day. She started reading Oma's bible, trying her best to sound out the words and remember what she could. She started at the beginning with Genesis and as she read, she started getting teary eyed. She could almost hear Oma's voice as she read out loud. Leah lost all track of time as she read. Once it was getting to be dinner time, Seth stopped playing with the children and went to retrieve Leah. As he approached their tent, he overheard Leah reading and he got a chill down his spine. At first, he thought the voice was so familiar and the words that came were more so.

"Oma," he muttered questioningly under his breath and opened the tent. Leah jumped a little, but recovered quickly enough. "Leah? What is that?"

"It's Oma's bible." Seth looked at Leah and then at the book. He nearly fell forward when he entered the tent. He went to his knees and came over to her and grabbed the book from her. Seth knew it the moment he saw it. There were some things he just didn't remember. But Oma? He remembered Oma. He opened the first page and saw everything he remembered and knew instantly it really was hers.

"How did you get this?" Leah took a deep breath, contemplating if she should be honest. At the very least, with Seth. But ultimately, she decided not to.

"I found out the Meat Monger had it so I took it back." Seth shot a stunned and nervous look at Leah.

"You stole this from the Meat Monger?"

"It's not stealing when it's yours," Leah said. Seth didn't respond to that. Rather he gave Leah a look, but then started reviewing the book as he'd been doing. He found the part that was folded.

"This is where we left off before Oma died, right?" Seth said. Leah nodded. "I overheard you reading this. It sounded a little like her."

"Did it?"

"A little," Seth said. "I can't believe you got this."

"Well, I did. So now we can have a little of her back." Seth looked up at Leah and seemed a little sad.

"I wish it didn't end the way it did," Seth said.

"I know," Leah said. Seth took a deep breath and then put the book to the side atop his blanket so it wasn't touching the ground.

"There's food ready," he said. "If we want a share, we'd better get out there now."

Seth stepped out of the tent and went to grab some food. Leah followed and did the same. They didn't talk about the incident again for the rest of dinner. Seth seemed as though he was lost in thought and Leah was in her own little dream world as well. After dinner, everyone dispersed, some going straight to bed while others continued with chores. Leah returned to her tent. She wanted to read more. Seth ended up following after her. Leah ignored it and figured she'd try reading quietly. It wouldn't be the same, but it was still practice. But when they were alone, Seth suddenly grabbed the bible, sat down on Leah's side of the tent on her blankets but made sure there was room for her too.

"Would you read to me?" Seth said when Leah looked at him strangely. He held the book out to her and Leah smiled.

"Let me start a fire first," she said before getting a fire ready so she could see. Then she sat down with Seth and started the book from the very beginning. "Im anfang shuf Gott den Himmel und die Erde," Leah began and Seth rested his head on her shoulder as she read. She couldn't remember a time when she and Seth hand bonded like this. Not since they were children. She remembered how Seth would always fall asleep first and he always fell asleep on her shoulder. Tonight was no exception. Seth fell asleep by the time Eve was created and Leah fell asleep before Cain murdered Abel.

A few days later, Renesmee's family came to the tribe to visit and to check on Renesmee. It was still early in the most recent pregnancy, and yet her belly seemed to be growing slightly faster than she had with the other two. Incredibly, so was Caevia. When her family arrived, Jacob went to Carlisle directly and mentioned what is was Renesmee had discussed with him. Wanting to speak to him privately, Jacob approached Carlisle and asked the rest of the family go to Renesmee and keep her occupied.

"Yes," Carlisle said after Jacob told him what they'd spoken about, "there is such a procedure. I can't say I'd recommend it, however. It's a very young operation and is irreversible. Do you have qualms about the risks or do you have qualms because you want more children?"

"The risks is what I'm most concerned with. I'm not so worried about the number. Hell, we can have 10 if she wants. I just don't want her jumping into something that involves her being cut open. Maybe I have a less than adequate understanding of pale faced medicine and I'm over thinking it, but I don't think my concerns are unreasonable. I told her we'd talk to you about this more."

"Does she know of your concerns?"

"More or less," Jacob said. "If she wants this to be the last pregnancy than that's fine. I just wonder if we have other options."

"Well," Carlisle said. "There are a few options that I'm aware of, but I can only recommend two. One option is still a surgery technically, but it's substantially less invasive. It's a contraption called an IUD and it's a method older than I am. The technology has come a long way and it virtually guarantees for the most part to prevent further pregnancies. There's still a chance, but it's highly unlikely. Typically, an IUD removes the lining of blood in a woman's uterus so the fertilized egg has nothing to latch on to."

"The risks?" Jacob asked.

"Infections can occur when not done properly. There's a chance of permanent infertility, but that's usually a problem when the woman has a pre-existing condition such as a feminine cancer. However, it can be left in for ten years at a time as I recall and can easily be removed at any time. The only other method I can suggest is feminine familiarity."

"Feminine familiarity?"

"She just has to get used to the way her cycles are. Women are fertile within three or four days of their period. Woman can track this by the moon or by calendar and there's no invasiveness to it. So if you and Renesmee decide she wants the operation, the way she is, she'll rather quickly, so there's no fear there. And she'll be permanently sterile. If she uses an IUD, she's infertile temporarily and she can always get a new one in 10 years or she can have it removed at any time and you two can try for another baby, or she can become more aware of her cycles and keep track of them so that she knows when she's ovulating and the two of you can make sure to refrain from sex on those days. I can recommend one other thing, but it would be on your shoulders rather than hers."

"What's that?" Jacob asked nervously.

"There's a similar operation called a vasectomy. It's far less invasive than a Tubal Ligation, or tube tying as Renesmee had called it, and it's also permanent. You heal quickly do you not?" Jacob nodded. "Then you would be up and ready to return to normal without any problem. All I would do is make an incision or a small cut at the base of your penis and-"

"No," Jacob interrupted. He shook his head and started waving his hands for a moment as he continued, "no, no, no, no, no, no, no." He stopped and looked right at Carlisle, "No." Carlisle chuckled and patted Jacob's shoulder.

"No vasectomy, then," he said.

"People have done that?" Jacob asked.

"In experimental trials, yes. Though to my knowledge, those that do practice birth control either do the more natural method I mentioned or they use different foreign objects such as sponges soaked in lemon juice, though I can't recommend that in good conscience. It's not very effective and the acidic nature of lemon juice meant to act as spermicide is often harsh of the cervix. I know of extracts woman can take the night after sex that supposedly ensures an egg doesn't attach, but I have my reservations on such things. Those can be dangerous and can kill a woman if taken incorrectly. In my professional opinion, Jacob, I would recommend either the natural method or the IUD. They're the least invasive and the least dangerous. Though the natural method is the best of all of them."

"Is Renesmee not aware of any of those other methods?"

"Certainly," Carlisle said. "She'd been a nurse before coming her going on 36 years. I suspect she went right for the surgery because it was permanent and didn't involve performing surgery on you." Jacob signed heavily and scratched the back of his head.

"I'll let it be her decision," Jacob finally said. "I'll support her no matter what."

"Jacob, aside from your options, I'm not the one to discuss this with. If you have contentions of any kind, you need to bring them up with her and you need to bring them up now. Problems arise when people don't communicate. I'm sure the two of you can come to a decision that you're both comfortable with, but you need to sit down and talk for that to happen."

Jacob took a deep breath and nodded at Carlisle. They returned to the group and the subject wasn't broached again until much later. Jacob asked Caevia to let Kevin and Kyle stay with her for the night while Jacob and Renesmee talked. Renesmee promised she'd come and get Kyle at least once she and Jacob were done. When they were finally alone in their tent, Jacob sat down and asked Renesmee to do the same.

"Is something the matter?" Renesmee asked.

"It's about what you said the other day about wanting Carlisle to do an operation so that you can't get pregnant anymore."

"Alright," Renesmee said, sitting up a little straighter. "I thought you said you wanted to wait until after the baby was born to discuss this further."

"Well, I took the opportunity to talk to Carlisle. I just wanted to have some reassurance that this might not be a bad thing. But he told me about other things we could do that wouldn't result in him cutting you open. Or me open for that matter." Renesmee smiled and giggled just a little.

"I see Carlisle explained vasectomies."

"No," Jacob said. "No, no, no, no, no." Renesmee laughed again.

"Don't worry, Jacob, I'm not asking you to get a vasectomy. And I am aware of those other methods. I'm assuming that you had ideas you preferred?"

"He mentioned something called an IUD and he also mentioned something natural."

"Yes," Renesmee said. "Thos are definitely options. Unfortunately, one requires renewal and the other requires a heightened awareness. I suppose the natural method is an option, but what if I get sloppy? What if I forget or what if you and I make love in the passion of the moment, my cycles be damned? Tubal Ligation is the most permanent method and he'll only have to do the procedure once. It requires less concern from either of us on top of that." Jacob sighed and scratched the back of his head again. "Are you saying you wanted more children?"

"I don't know," Jacob said.

"Well, Jacob, I've given you two sons already. It's not as though an heir is the issue." Jacob smiled and shook his head.

"I know you've given me two sons. And I'm grateful for that. But I want a girl now. What if this new baby isn't a girl? If you give me another son and then just have the procedure, no ifs ands or buts about it, then that's it. We'll never have a daughter."

"This child might be a girl."

"What if it isn't?" Renesmee smiled and moved closer to Jacob so that their faces were just barely touching.

"Then we'll try again," Renesmee said sweetly. Jacob looked at her at last, at a loss for what to say.

"Really?"

"It didn't occur to me that I was upsetting you this much by suggesting I take immediate means to end stop having more children. I'm sorry that I didn't let you have more of a say in this. So here's what we can do. If this next child is a boy, then we'll try again for a girl. If this baby is a girl, would you be alright with me having the operation? I did mean it when I said I wanted us on the same page on this matter. So if there's anything else you want to discuss, then let me know and we'll discuss it." Jacob smiled genuinely and gave Renesmee a quick kiss.

"I can do that," Jacob said. "We'll wait until we have a girl. Once we have a little girl, we'll go ahead and stop having kids. I'll let you decide how we do that and I'll support you through the whole thing. Let's just have a daughter first."

"Agreed," Renesmee smiled and the two shared another kiss. "You'll be a wonderful daddy, Jacob," she teased. "She's not even born and Natalie already has you wrapped around her little fingers." Jacob chuckled.

"I can't wait."

After the two of them came to that understanding, Jacob was a lot more open to Renesmee's desire to have surgery. He still wasn't too keen on Carlisle cutting her open, but the more Renesmee explained how it works and that, thanks to Carlisle's good friend she'd mentioned, she wouldn't feel a thing and she'd be up and walking again back to normal in less than an hour. Such news wound up going around the tribe until it made its way to Leah's ears. She's not known such a thing was possible and the idea became exceedingly tempting. She did like children, she just didn't want any of her own. It was a decision all the easier to come to knowing Hailey was more than happy with that. Leah blushed a little when the thought came to her mind.

Hailey never brought Mitch to the tribe to trade for clams. Leah had been upset at first but realized, more than likely, he just hadn't been able to sell the idea. It was a long shot, but at least he tried. Leah did still go foraging that Sunday even though Hailey wouldn't be at the bluff. The truth is she did actually need to complete the task and her performance had been lacking the past several weeks. She and Seth were dominantly living off other people's food and salmon jerky. Seth wasn't too pleased with it. At the shop, since Hailey wasn't going to the bluff, he stayed in bed and let himself sleep in. He still thought of Leah, though. He missed her already and he was really disappointed that he'd not been able to get Mitch to agree to attempt a trade with the Quileutes. He lost all track of time and was a little stunned when Mitch suddenly let himself in Hailey's room.

"Damn it, Uncle, why didn't you knock?" Hailey said, suddenly sitting up on the bed.

"Have you seen Hugo's bible?" Mitch asked suddenly. "It was in my chest and now it's not there."

"Why would I have seen it?" Hailey lied. "I don't go into your room without permission."

"Well, get out of bed and help me look for it. It looks like your German bible, but smaller and it'll have a family tree filled out in it." Mitch stepped out and went back to his room to start looking for the bible. Hailey yawned and rubbed his face, in no terrible hurry. He knew where the bible was anyway. Finally, Hailey crawled out of bed and put on some pants before going to Mitch's room to start looking for the phantom book. "I don't understand," Mitch said. "I checked on it just the other day and it was in here and I didn't take it out. Did you take it?"

"No, Uncle, I did not take it," Hailey replied groggily. He started looking through Mitch's drawers pulling up and replacing clothes without really even checking. Mitch gave up on the chest and went to the drawer in his little nightstand by his tiny bed and found nothing. Meanwhile, Hailey went to the modest closet and started looking more and there was still nothing.

"Where could it have gone," Mitch asked under his breath in frustration. Tiring immediately of this, Hailey decided to just offer a suggestion that was, in all technicality, true.

"Do you suppose Miss Jagger took it last she was here?" Hailey asked. "She may have gone through our things when we weren't looking, found it and taken it. It did belong to her grandmother after all." Mitch stopped suddenly and looked at Hailey. The two of them shared a stare for several silent seconds as Mitch thought it through.

"Perhaps," Mitch said hesitantly. "Though I could have sworn I had it following the day she'd been here."

"She may have snuck in and taken it later," Hailey said. "You know Indians can be crafty little thieves."

"If she got it, it would've been during one of your many naps I'm sure," Mitch said, continuing to stare at Hailey strangely and suspiciously.

"We can always confront her about it," Hailey suggested.

"We have no proof," Mitch said.

"Do we need any?" There was a moment of silence as they stared at each other.

"I suppose we can check," Mitch said. "Get the horses ready."

Hailey nodded and left to go to the stables while Mitch continued to search his room. When two horses were ready, Hailey went back upstairs to retrieve Mitch and the two of them road off to the tribe. They didn't have the horses run and they rode in relative silence. Hailey kept his eyes forward while Mitch would look at Hailey from time to time suspiciously. When they arrived, everyone was surprised to see them. Jacob was the first to approach them, not bothering to fetch his father. He noticed they didn't have their cart and he was immediately suspicious and approached them cautiously.

"What is it?" Jacob asked.

"Good morning, Jacob," Mitch said. "I apologize for dropping in so suddenly, but I seem to have misplaced something at the shop and, well, Hailey suggested that Leah might have taken it when she'd been at the shop last. Since I can't seem to locate the missing item anywhere, I figured it was worth checking."

"You're accusing my cousin of stealing?" Jacob asked, raising his voice and looking right at Hailey.

"It was a bible that Hugo had owned, so if she did take it, then I won't be upset," Mitch hurried to say. "I just want to make sure it wasn't lost."

"She did come home with a book a few days ago," Jacob said.

"Well, there you go," Hailey said to Mitch. "Leah has it, so you can relax."

"You seem to be rather unconcerned with this," Mitch said to Hailey, then looked at Jacob. "Listen, Jacob, if Leah wants any of her father's old things, then I will gladly let her have them. I would just prefer that she come to me and ask rather than take it."

"I'll go and get her," Jacob said, still giving Hailey a mean look. He knew Leah was going to claim that she'd stolen the book but he was upset that Hailey would push the same claim given that Leah could have gotten in trouble for it. Leah was facing the ocean and cleaning some clothes when Jacob walked up to her. "The Meat Monger and his lackey are here. It's not to trade, though. It would appear Mitch found out that book Hailey gave you is gone and Hailey said you stole it."

"That is the story I suggested," Leah said, irritatingly unconcerned. "Is Mitch upset or something?"

"No, he's not. He just said he'd let you have your father's things but he would prefer you ask first rather than just take them. I'm just a little upset because Hailey's placing all the blame on you."

"Well, don't get mad. I told him to." Leah stood from her spot and went to her tent to grab the bible. "I'll clear this up," she said once she had it and she went to Mitch and Hailey. Noticing, Sara ran to Jacob demanding answers.

"What's happening?"

"Leah stole her grandmother'sbook from the meat monger and he found out. Leah's just confronting them about it." Sara groaned, and then gently pushed Jacob.

"Well for goodness sake, Jacob, go and help her!" Sara raised her voice just a little and Jacob confirmed he would and followed after Leah. She was still the first one to reach them and she made sure to be immediately defensive and of poor mood.

"Jacob said you wanted to speak to me?"

"Mitch noticed his book was missing," Hailey said first. "When he told me which book it was, I just came to the rational conclusion. It appears I came to the right one and saved us hours of uselessly searching the damned shop."

"Well, Mr. Dauer, I don't need permission to take back what's mine. This was my Oma's book and if I feel the need to take it, then I will."

"Miss Jagger," Mitch interrupted. "I realize that book was your father's and as I told Jacob, I will happily give you any of your father's things that you want. I only ask that you tell me rather than take them without saying anything. I thought I'd lost that and I would've never forgiven myself if I had."

"I understand," Leah said, finally being sympathetic. "And if you're offering, I would appreciate the opportunity to take back my father's and mother's things. Or do you only have my father's things?"

"Only your father's," Mitch said.

"If that's what we're doing, then I'll go with you," Jacob suddenly as he walked up behind them. "If mother sees you walking away with them alone, she'll have a panic attack."

"Just so long as you're aware that neither of you will be allowed upstairs alone," Hailey stepped in. Leah found herself getting extremely annoyed with Hailey. He was certainly a good actor at least.

"I can agree to that," Jacob said in reply. "Just so long as you're both aware that neither of you will be upstairs alone with her either." Hailey kept a straight face, but he was extremely annoyed that Jacob had called his bluff. Leah, while hiding it, was just as annoyed and yet couldn't help but be amused given that Hailey was being so rude, even if out of necessity.

"Naturally, Jacob," Mitch said. "In fact, Hailey can help me bring the chest downstairs so you can look through it in the kitchen. I admit, my bedroom is extremely cramped. There's no way we can all fit up there."

"You're too old for that, Mitch. You might hurt your back."

"Well, then you can carry it downstairs yourself then," Mitch bit back before looking back at Leah. "We can return another day with the cart so you and Jacob can ride back with us comfortably."

"Don't bother, old man," Hailey said before trotting to Leah and helping her onto the horse. She didn't speak a word of complaint and Hailey had the horse galloping before Jacob or Mitch could say a word. Mitch was a little stupefied as he watched them ride away and then he looked right at Jacob.

"What the hell's going on?" Mitch asked.

"Pardon?" Jacob asked, playing dumb.

"Hailey's been acting strangely. He's been going fishing every Sunday, he's pestering me about Leah's father, and now those two bicker only for her to get on his horse without a word. If there's something going on, someone needs to tell me."

"If there is, I don't know about it," Jacob lied. Just then, Sara finally came forward in a panic.

"Jacob! What's going on?! Why did the Meat Monger run away with Leah?"

"Don't worry, mother, we're all going into town together. Evidently they have things that belonged to Leah's father and she wants them back."

"Whatever for? Jacob, you follow her this instant! I do NOT want her alone with that horrible man!"

"She won't be, mom, she won't be, just calm down. I'll take care of this." Jacob looked at Mitch.

"Let's get going," he said before he started running after them. He noticed Jacob was a very fast runner and he was, once again, a little stupefied.

"Has he always been that fast?" Mitch asked no one in particular.

"My son is fast," Sara managed, despite her less than pleased state. "You follow them," she continued. "She comes home completely, you understand? I send my son if you don't." Mitch looked at her a little stunned.

"You speak English too now?"

"My daughter's family teach me. Now go! I want Leah come home safe! There be trouble if she do not!"

"Yes, yes," Mitch said, sighing. He finally got the horse to go into a run and followed after them. Up ahead, Hailey and Leah were given the opportunity to talk.

"You mentioned I had Oma's book?"

"No, Mitch noticed it was gone," Hailey said. "I didn't know he checked the chest periodically. He woke me out of bed to help him look for it. He started getting really upset when we couldn't find it so I just 'suggested' the possibility that you might have it. And it's not all bad. We get to see each other and you get to have more of your father's things. Everybody wins." Leah smiled and turned her head to give Hailey a very quick and light kiss.

"So you planned for this all along?" she teased

"Not in the least," Hailey chuckled.

"And Mitch doesn't suspect anything?"

"I think he's beginning to get suspicious that there's something going on with me but I keep telling him there's nothing. Besides, it's not as if he has any proof to confront me with. In fact, the man was babbling on about trying to set me up with a girl in town, so I would think he's still in the dark about this." Leah turned her head to look right at Hailey.

"With who?" Leah asked meanly. Hailey smiled and kissed her nose, but she stayed mad.

"No one you would remember. I can't remember her name right off the top of my head, but I know it's Mrs. Marshal's daughter. I know her daughter's younger than you, but that's all I can remember."

"Robbing the cradle now, are we?" Leah bit back and looked forward. Hailey chuckled again.

"Are you telling me you're jealous?"

"No," Leah said.

"Well, don't be. He just mentioned it in passing and I told him not to bother. You have nothing to worry about." Leah didn't say anything, so Hailey kissed her neck. "I mean it. You have nothing to worry about."

"Alright," Leah said. "Not even a week long paramour and already your uncle is trying to make you see other women."

"The man can't make me do anything, Leah. I would think that'd be obvious by now." Leah finally smiled again and rested her head against his chest.

"You really are lucky the man hasn't fired you and kicked you out yet."

"There's a bank in town, Leah. If worse comes to worse, I can work there."

"Since Mitch would be your previous employer and in a small town no less, your chances of getting that job don't look too good."

"Oh, that man will give me a glowing review. Even if I have to hold a gun to his head," Hailey joked.

"You're such a terrible nephew," Leah teased. "How would you feel if little Henry did the same thing to you one day? It was Henry right?"

"Henry and Charles now," Hailey said. "So if Henry's a pain, I can move on to Charles."

"If only poor Mitch were so lucky," Leah laughed. As they ran, Jacob finally caught up to them and Hailey looked at him with bug eyes when he saw him.

"How the hell did you catch up with us on foot?"

"Magic powers," Jacob said truthfully, yet with harsh sarcasm. "Don't you do that again, Leah. Mom ran up to me in a fit telling me to follow you and if the two of you keep this shit up, it won't be 'just between you' anymore."

"Where's the old man?" Hailey asked.

"My mother was giving him a piece of her mind in broken English by the time I started chasing after the two of you."

"Your Aunt knows English now?" Hailey asked. "Is your uncle going to follow suit?"

"I wouldn't hold your breath," Jacob said. As they ran, Mitch was finally catching up as well, but the three of them still arrived back at the shop before Mitch. Leah let herself down since Mitch could now see them and Hailey jumped down too.

"Alright, Miss Jagger, make this quick," Hailey said meanly. Jacob looked at Hailey and then rolled his eyes.

"It would be quicker if you got your ass upstairs and got the chest now wouldn't it?" Jacob said.

"Hailey, stop being argumentative and just get the chest from upstairs," Mitch said as he walked to the back door to the kitchen and walked in. Hailey gestured for Leah and Jacob to follow and he came in right behind them. Hailey walked past them to go upstairs while Jacob looked around and through the door that led to the front.

"So this is the ogre's cave," Jacob mumbled and Leah smiled a little.

"What was that?" Mitch asked, not paying attention regardless.

"Nothing, I was just saying it's smaller than I imagined."

"Ah, yes, well, when your customer base is limited, so is your space by default," Mitch said. "You know, Miss Jagger," Mitch started, "I remember when you and Seth were little and you two used to run back here and take my food." He chuckled at the memory.

"I was never taking your food," Leah said. "Seth would take your food and I would tell him to stop."

"Yes, Seth was always a grabby little boy, wasn't he? If you left your food unattended, he'd eat it right out from under you."

"It's nice to know some things never change," Jacob said and Mitch laughed. Leah smiled to.

"You're hardly one to talk, Jacob," Leah said. "The way this man and his pack eats, it's a miracle the village hasn't starved." Jacob went still and Leah realized she'd said too much.

"His pack?" Mitch asked.

"Embry and Quil," Jacob said. "We've been friends our whole lives and Leah will call us 'the pack'. It's just her being mean." Leah relaxed and mentally thanked Jacob for correcting her reveal.

"I see," Mitch said.

"What's taking him so long?" Leah asked, slightly louder.

"If you want to help carry this downstairs, Miss Jagger, be my fucking guest!" Hailey yelled from upstairs. Wanting to grab the opportunity, Leah bit back.

"Fine, I will! Can't be that heavy," she said before she started for the stairs, but Jacob grabbed her and stopped her.

"I'll help him," Jacob said and he went up the stairs instead, ignoring Leah cross her arms, clearly irritated. Hailey had the chest in the hallway when he got there and found a handle on the side to grab onto. He lifted the chest and nearly carried it by himself and brought it downstairs, Hailey following after. Jacob put the chest on the kitchen table for easier access and flipped the lid open after releasing the latch. "Have at it, Leah," Jacob said.

Leah stepped forward and looked in the chest. The first thing she saw were clothes, so she gently pushed those aside to see if she might see something she remembered.

"Was daddy buried with his ring?"

"Yes," Mitch answered.

"I wish we could have burned his body too like we did mom's," Leah said.

"Chief William would not have allowed it I'm sure," Mitch said. "It was difficult enough getting your mother's body back. I'd suggested we bury them together and your uncle refused. Wouldn't tolerate it."

"I know," Leah said sadly. "I remember." She pushed some more things aside and found one more thing. It was a hard square that was surrounded by a huge handkerchief. She unwrapped the handkerchief and revealed an old family photo. It was the only one they'd ever taken and her Oma had been the one that insisted on it. Oma sat in the forefront on a little chair with little toddler Seth on her lap. Her mother and father stood to Oma's left in order of their height, so Uileila came first and Hugo was placed last, and Leah stood in front and between her parents and right next to Oma with her father's hand on one shoulder and her mother's hand on the other.

"Can I look?" Jacob asked, holding his hand out to take the picture. Leah nodded weakly and handed it to Jacob. She'd forgotten all about that picture, but now that she saw it, she remembered that day exactly.

"Oma had been bugging daddy for days about getting a family picture before he finally agreed and scrounged up the money for one. I remember mother burrowed a dress from someone to wear."

"My wife's," Mitch said. "And she gave you a dress my daughter used to wear and I let your father burrow one of my older suits."

"From before you got old and chubby, obviously," Hailey said and Mitch swatted his arm.

"I didn't like that dress. It was too big as I remember and mom had to sew the back of it a little so it would look right. But daddy promised that if I smiled a big smile during the picture that he would take us to the school house where all the swings were to play."

"That explains the goofy smile," Jacob chuckled. His mother had been right about Uileila: they looked a lot alike. If he didn't know better, he'd think it was his mother. But then he realized her nose was just a little longer and her eyes were set ever so slightly differently. When Jacob looked at Hugo, he could see the resemblance Leah and Seth had to him. Leah still looked enough like her mother, but she had her father's nose. Most definitely. So did Seth.

"It wasn't goofy," Leah said, taking the picture back. "Oma said it was the prettiest smile in the world." She looked at the photo again and looked at her mother. "Mother's smile was prettier, though."

"Can I see it?" Hailey asked and Leah handed him the picture. Hailey was just as stunned at the resemblance Uileila had to Sara. Virtually the same woman from what he could tell. And while Hugo wasn't smiling quite as brightly, he looked happy. Nothing like a man haunted and on the verge of murdering his wife. "You haven't changed much," Hailey settled for saying to Leah. Though she did look very cute in the picture. He handed Leah back the picture and she accepted it and placed it on her Oma's bible that she'd brought with her. She started looking through the chest some more hoping that she might find one more long lost trinket that she'd remember again the moment she saw it.

"Does someone else live in our house?" Leah asked suddenly.

"No, it was taken town," Mitch said. "After what happened, no one could stand to keep the house upright and it was demolished. Nothing's been done with the land since."

"Oh," Leah said sadly. "Is there anything in here that daddy brought from Germany?"

"No," Mitch answered Frankly. "The only thing out of Germany was that bible." Leah nodded and took a deep breath.

"Then I've taken all I wanted to take."

"Alright, Miss Jagger. Hailey, go take it back upstairs."

"I'll help," Jacob said, taking the chest single handedly with Hailey just following behind him. Mitch looked at Leah and saw how sad she looked and it broke his heart. While they were upstairs, Mitch was bold and patted Leah on the back.

"Are you alright, dear?"

"I miss him," Leah admitted. "That's all."

"I miss him too, Leah. I know, after all that's happened, it might be hard to believe, but that man loved all of you. You, Seth, your mother, he loved all of you with all his heart. He never wanted to hurt any of you."

"I just wish I knew what happened. One day he was fine, and then before I knew it, everything went wrong."

"Your father suffered a great deal, Leah," Mitch said. "And he was determined to live a better life when he came here and he wanted the same for you."

"He'd told us we were the only part of his American Dream that came true," Leah said, hurrying to brush a tear away.

"Yes, he'd said as much to me about you as well. But he thought coming to America would make the nightmares finally go away. Sadly, they never did."

"What happened to him, Mitch?" Leah asked. "Why had he suffered so much?"

"Leah, if there was one thing your father wanted above all else, it was for you and your brother never to be burdened with his torment. He swore me to never tell his story to you or Seth. He wanted the two of you not to suffer or ever feel what he felt. He wanted better for the two of you." Mitch stopped a moment and sighed, looking sad. "I suppose that didn't happen." Just then, Jacob and Hailey came back downstairs free of the chest. Mitch walked to the front of the store so he could grab a paper bag for Leah to carry the bible and picture in.

"You never told me you were related to Goliath," Hailey said quietly to Leah.

"And it'll take more than a boy with a slingshot and a rock to bring me down, Mr. Dauer," Jacob said menacingly.

"I can see that," Hailey said. "Are you sure there was nothing else in there that you wanted?"

"No," Leah said. "They were all daddy's clothes. I'd rather have the bible and picture." Leah looked at the picture again. "I wonder if Seth will remember this? Probably not. He was so young when we took this."

"Just don't let mom or dad see that," Jacob said. Mitch returned with a paper bag and Leah accepted it and placed the picture and bible in them.

"Thank you for letting me have these back," Leah said.

"No need, Miss Jagger. It's only right."

"If there's nothing else, Leah, then let's get back. If I don't have you back in less than an hour, mom will be upset." Leah didn't answer, but she did follow Jacob out of the shop. Hailey followed after them and telling Mitch he'd help them get home and closed the door behind them so Mitch wouldn't hear anything.

"I'll give her a ride on the horse," Hailey said, stopping them. "You might be able to run back really fast, but Leah can't. I'll have her home in no time." Jacob looked at Hailey, then looked at Leah.

"I'll go ahead, but I'm not going back into the village until you're back. I can guarantee mom will expect us to return together without the Meat Monger."

"I'll drop her off right outside the village," Hailey agreed and Jacob started going ahead, but he didn't take his eyes off them until he was past the trees and the shop was no longer visible. "Finally," Hailey mumbled.

"Thank you, by the way," Leah said. "I'd forgotten all about this picture."

"For the record, you looked very cute in the picture," Hailey was finally able to say before he got onto the horse and helped her up. They started with a gallop just in case Mitch might be watching, but once the shop was out of site, they slowed down substantially.

"Did Mitch happen to tell you what happened to my father?" Leah asked when they were slowed to a walk.

"Yes, I did," Hailey said.

"He said it was terrible and that daddy never wanted me or Seth to know about it."

"He told me as much," Hailey said. "I'll tell you if you want, but not right now. This isn't the time to tell such a story."

"No," Leah shook her head. "If daddy didn't want either of us to know, then there must have been a reason. I won't disrespect that decision." From behind her, Hailey gave Leah a kiss on her head.

"I think that would likely be for the best." Leah reached a hand up and touched Hailey's cheek, continuing to look forward. They rode the rest of the way until they were closer to the village. Once there, Hailey helped Leah down from the horse and glanced around to make sure they were alone before he gave her a tender kiss. "I'll meet you here Wednesday 10:15 so we can continue our reading lesson."

"You'll be pleased to know I've been practicing. So we might get through a whole story in a reasonable amount of time."

"Good," Hailey said, giving Leah one more kiss. "We were reading Rapunzel as I recall. How far were we?"

"I think we were near the end. The evil witch had discovered Rapunzel was pregnant."

"Ah yes," Hailey said. "Now I remember. We'll pick up the story from there, then."

"I look forward to it."