Endless Secrets

Everyone was staring; I could feel their eyes on me, wondering who I was. They were curious – where did I come from? Why was I here? As only Sam and I could communicate, being alphas, neither of our packs knew anything about the other. I was sure Sam had told them what I’d spoken, as I had to Lionel and Marisol, but they wanted their questions answered from the sources themselves.

Sam’s eyes met mine, surely feeling the same way. Without speaking, we made an agreement, an alliance. Just like that, our packs were connected and I could feel everyone’s thoughts. I was overwhelmed by a sudden influx of voices joking and chattering between each other – once they were aware of the three newcomers in their minds, they were silent. The silence, however, lasted only as long as it had started. Suddenly they began introducing themselves. From that, I learned the four wolves’ names: Jared, Paul, Embry, and Quil. Lionel and Marisol easily jumped into conversation, happy to meet new people and make friends.

I wasn’t so happy about this communication. For so long, I had been used to only my own thoughts – then Lionel and I formed a pack. It wasn’t odd, then; it was only as though we were conversing normally between each other. Marisol wasn’t a big addition, either. However, the sudden addition of several minds caused my head to pound. There were more than just the five around me; I could sense several other wolves far off, confused as well. I blocked everyone out and retreated into my mind, only returning when I sensed my name being called.

It wasn’t too long before a small town started to appear ahead of us. None of the houses were big, though there was a big variance in the type of homes. Some were log cabins, some dirty and small, while others were slightly more modern. I actually found myself attracted to the place; it seemed like a very cozy and knit community. Glancing back at Marisol and Lionel and seeing how well they were getting along, I figured we’d be here for a while. But how well would we fit in? How well would I fit in?

Sam’s pack ran off, leaving us with Sam himself. He led us to a small white house and told us to wait. Phasing into his human form, he ran into the house. I could hear him talking with a woman, though I couldn’t decipher his words – he was too far away, and I was rather weak at the moment. A couple minutes passed before he comes back outside, fully clothed. In his arms he has bundles of clothing; he tosses them down to us and tells us to come inside when we’re ready.

I hardly glance at the clothes before shifting. The cool air hits my skin and I shiver; I don’t have the same temperature as a normal wolf, who would normally have not minded the slight change. Sam has given me a long tribal-patterned skirt and a light grey pullover. I laugh when I realize he’s given me underwear that’s actually my size.

After pulling on the clothes, I glance over at Marisol and Lionel. Marisol has a brown skirt that just covers her knees and a matching lace sweater. Lionel’s grey cargo shorts and a black tee. Well then; seems like the women dress much better than the men around here. I smile at the two reassuringly as we head into the house.

Inside, it’s warm and well-lit. There’s wood paneling that would normally look old and tacky, but it just makes the house cozier. Sam is sitting on a couch talking to the woman quietly. When we enter the room, he and the woman stand. They’re holding hands; she lets go of his as she walks over to us, a kind smile on her face.

“Hello, I’m Emily! It’s wonderful to meet you all.” She says; the genuine kindness in her voice surprises me. But what surprises me most is the three red scars across her face. I know immediately that this is indeed Sam’s mate; his wife probably by the rings on their left hands. Knowing someone who seemed so calm and controlled had lashed out at someone so close to him was somewhat worrying. But, judging by how much the scars have healed, it must have happened a long time ago. Glancing up at him, I notice him staring at me with an unhappy, guilty expression. I can’t imagine what he put himself through.

“I’m Silvia. And these are my friends Lionel and Marisol.” I tell her, smiling. We have a pleasant conversation, the five of us. Emily truly is a kind person; she loves to laugh and is almost completely selfless. I know she’d do anything for Sam and the La Push boys. The thought brings a smile to my face.

“Do you have anywhere to stay?” Emily asks us, after I comment on how welcoming her home seems.

I glance over at Marisol and Lionel, who look uneasy. Neither wants to spend another night in their wolf forms; they are tired and it’s been entirely too long since they slept in a bed.

“No.” I reply, looking back at her. “But I’m sure we will find something. I’ll just have to drop by a bank first.” I shrug, like it’s nothing. Honestly, though, it’ll probably take a while to get that money. Though I already had a good amount of money transferred a couple of months ago, I’d have to sign a bunch of papers and go through a bunch of formalities that were rather unnecessary.

Emily shakes her head. “Nonsense!” The emotion behind her voice causes me to widen my eyes; I hadn’t expected the outburst. “Sam, your grandfather’s house is still empty, isn’t it? They can stay there, can’t they?” She uses a sweet, yet rather manipulative tone to get him on her side. I hold back a laugh as Sam’s face contorts as he stares at a pouting Emily.

“Emily, dear, I can’t just give them that big old house. We’ll be broke from electricity bills.” Sam tells her, looking away guiltily.

“Well, I’m not broke. I can certainly pay rent, if you don’t mind waiting for me to visit the bank.” I say, rolling my eyes.



Three hours later, I’m standing in the doorway of Sam’s grandfather’s house. It’s one of the larger houses, made of wood paneling and stone. The inside is nice, but dark. Though the kitchen, dining room, and living room all open up into each other, it feels closed off. There’s three bathrooms; one downstairs and two upstairs. Luckily, the house has three bedrooms. I snag the master with a bathroom of my own and Marisol and Lionel take up one of the smaller rooms.

Sam showed us around the property – it was actually rather big, with a shed, garage, and over an acre of land. He seemed proud of the place, despite never actually living there. Apparently he’d visited it a lot as a child, when his grandfather was still alive. We head back inside and Sam starts to leave.

“We’re having a bonfire tonight to tell the rest of the pack about your arrival.” Sam says. “I’m sure most people know already, but I’d like to do it officially. I’ll see you there.” He leaves no room for refusal, not that I’d have denied the request when everyone’s been so friendly.

A couple hours pass; the sun starts to set. I yell up at Marisol and Lionel that we’re leaving for the bonfire at the beach and quickly fix my hair in a mirror. It takes only a couple minutes to get there, as the house is right on the beach. The fire is already high and most of the pack is there, laughing and tossing bottles of what I can only assume is alcohol around to each other.

This time, no one stops when we arrive. A couple of glances are shot our way, along with warm smiles, but that’s about it. I smile back, happy that we seem to have already been accepted. I know a couple of them are still wary of me in particular, with my uncanny wolf form, but no one shows it. If this continues, I can’t see how I’ll ever want to leave.

Marisol mutters something to me as she heads over to a group of boys her age. I smirk as she begins flirting with one with a young, boyish face. He grins and throws an arm over her shoulder, talking animatedly about something. The rest of the boys join into their conversation. Well, Marisol’s fitting in well.

I follow Lionel to a bench crafted from a log, staying silent as he talks to someone – Paul, I think; we might’ve met him earlier. Lionel is telling him how we travelled for months in our wolf forms, hunting and eating the wildlife. Paul seems both intrigued and disgusted by this, almost as if he can’t stand the thought of taking down an animal like that.

Sam stands up then, and shouts for everyone to quiet down. Behind him, I notice a younger man with black hair staring, no, glaring at me. I glare back at him, not understanding why he feels the need to do so. Because of him, I forget to listen to Sam talking for the first minute or so. It isn’t until I hear “wolves on the beach” that I look up, realizing he’s talking about my pack and I.

“Silvia and Lionel have come from Italy, joined by Marisol in Canada.” He says, looking at me. Sam doesn’t have to point us out for anyone to figure out who we are; we stick out like sore thumbs. We all have lighter, paler skin than those in La Push. Lionel and I at least have curly, dark hair, but Marisol’s blond hair makes her the odd one out.

“I’ve made an… alliance with her, and she and her pack will be staying in my grandfather’s home until they wish to leave.” Sam announces. I realize I’ve once again zoned out, missing part of his story. “Does anyone have any objections to this?”

When someone stood up, Sam was surprised. He didn’t think anyone would actually have the nerve to speak out against us staying. To no surprise, it was the man who’d been glaring at me earlier. “What now, Jacob?” Sam growls at him, obviously not a fan of him.

“I was talking to Alice today, when I went to visit Renesmee…” Jacob says.

Renesmee. The human-vampire hybrid.

“Apparently Silver is only going to bring us trouble. She wouldn’t tell me why, but she was really shaken up about it. Alice said she might hurt Nessie! She has to leave.” By the end of his short rant, Jacob was growling at me, fire in his eyes. I didn’t understand how he could believe something like that, when I had never ever met this Alice.

Standing up, I crossed my arms. “I’m not going to hurt a child, Jacob. Especially not when she’s something so damn rare.”

If it was possible, Jacob’s eyes narrowed even more. “How the hell did you know that? Who told her Nessie was a hybrid?” His voice rose considerably; he was almost panicking at this point. He glared at everyone at the bonfire – no one spoke up. Of course not; no one had said a word.

So I smirk at him and uncross my arms. “Why did you call me Silver? How did Alice know that?” I shrug.

“I—well—So you admit it? You’re only going to cause us trouble?” He spits out, not knowing what to say. Getting angry, I shake my head.

“Damn it, Jacob. I have never even thought of causing you trouble. Alice is obviously mistaken. She doesn’t know anything.” I growl back at him. I wasn’t sure how much longer I could hold back my anger – I couldn’t control myself as easily as others could. Lionel cast me an uneasy glance and bit his lip, sensing this. He grabbed my hand and pulled me down to the bench.

Jacob started yelling at me. It took only seconds for Sam to react, shouting back that Jacob didn’t have a choice in pack matters anymore. Despite what Jacob had said, Sam was still on my side. A small smile reached my lips, knowing that he’d defend me. It may have been due to the alliance we’d created earlier, rather than a growing friendship, but I didn’t mind. At least I had someone else to count on.

Slowly, Jacob’s anger died down and he muttered an apology before running off. The bonfire resumed its joyful atmosphere and lasted late into the night, until people began to fall asleep from exhaustion. Marisol was one of those people, and one of the boys from earlier – Seth – was hell-bent on carrying her home. Smiling at the sweet gesture, I led him back and told him Marisol would be happy he’d done so. I slowly trudged up to my bedroom and fell onto the large bed, happy to be able to rest on a soft surface. It didn’t take long to fall asleep; I was as exhausted as anyone else.