That Monday afternoon, I was on my way to the Cullens' house; I had work with Mrs. Esme and I couldn't miss it, as much as I wanted to. I parked the truck outside and then entered the house, but this time it felt different—it felt as if I were walking into the lair of a pack of wolves.
But I did it anyway. For the simple fact that I needed the money. And to keep an eye on them. As the saying goes, keep your friends close and your enemies closer. Not that they were my enemies or anything like that... well, not yet.
Everything seemed quiet; I expected to see the boys playing video games in the living room, but I didn't find anyone. Since I had been here many times before, I knew the way to the office. So I went up, reached the door, and knocked.
"Esme, are you in there?" I spoke softly.
"Yes, honey, come in."
I opened the door and found her at her desk, busy with several blueprints for house renovations. She looked the same as always, but now that I knew her true self, I couldn't let myself be fooled. Turning my back to her, I checked the hallway while slowly closing the door.
The day went by with a normality that bordered on the absurd. I worked with Esme in the studio, outlining the moldings for a vaulted ceiling. Her presence was still warm, but now I noticed the inconsistencies—various aspects I wouldn't have realized if I hadn't been actively looking for them: her very straight way of walking, even though she wanted to appear slouched; when she is concentrated, I notice she doesn't blink for a long time or doesn't seem to breathe, only hunching her shoulders.
But well, I ignored those things and focused only on the work.
A good while later, as is custom, I took a break—either playing chess with Jasper or talking about fashion with Alice—and this time I met with the Vampire for a match.
We played two games; this time he seemed more focused than usual, as if he were searching for something. I didn't want to delve deeper for fear of giving myself away, so I just enjoyed the game, and I truly did. I didn't intend to, but I did.
Just as I didn't intend to spend fun time with Alice, knowing she gets excited to have someone share fashion tips with her—which color looks better with another—or even simply reading novels in the library among the three of us.
When the chess match ended, I stared at the board for a second too long. Jasper was there, in front of me, with that perfect posture that now felt so unsettling to me. I picked up the white pieces with slow movements, trying to make my breathing sound natural, even though inside my power wouldn't stop moving forcefully, keeping the shield over my mind intact.
"Your mind is elsewhere today, Mael," Jasper said. His voice was calm, but I felt he was analyzing every vibration of my body.
"Just tired, high school is killing me," I lied, giving him one of those smiles I practiced in front of the mirror.
I stood up and walked toward the library's large window. Outside, the Forks forest looked like one of those professional photographs. I felt his presence watching me; they were like mannequins pretending to be alive. Alice appeared out of nowhere, with that way of walking that doesn't make a single sound on the floor. She brought a high fashion magazine, and her golden eyes shone with an intensity that almost made me forget she was a predator.
"Mael! Look at this, Esme says midnight blue would look incredible on you for the gala dinner next week at the town hall. What do you think?" she asked me, showing me a suit that probably cost more than my truck.
"Alice, I'm a Swan. My maximum gala is a clean plaid shirt," I joked, and for a moment, the laughter of the three of us filled the room.
It was weird. Really weird. I was there, surrounded by beings that could tear me apart in a blink, sharing fashion advice and pawn opening strategies, and yet, I felt... comfortable. It scared me how easy it was to lower my guard with them. But then I remembered the coldness of Jasper's skin when we shook hands at the end of the game, or the fact that none of them had blinked in the last ten minutes, and my instinct would go back on guard.
That afternoon at the Cullen house, the atmosphere felt as if the air weighed a ton. Even though Alice's jokes about my color combinations were the same as always, and Jasper moved his chess pieces with the same military elegance, I couldn't get the image of the guy I tore apart in Port Angeles out of my head. Every time I looked Jasper in the eyes—those golden eyes that I now knew hid a predator—I felt my mental "sun" vibrating with a constant warning.
"Your turn, Mael," Jasper said, snapping me out of my thoughts. He was leaning against the back of the chair, observing me with an intensity that made me wonder if my "cloth" shield was actually working.
"I know, I'm just calculating if it's worth losing my rook for your bishop," I lied, moving the piece with a hand I forced myself to keep steady.
We played two more games. Jasper was unusually quiet, concentrated in a way that was scary. It seemed like he was trying to "feel" something in the air, that ability of his to manage emotions, but I kept my mind like a still photograph of Charlie's house: boring, flat, and empty. If he was looking for chaos or fear, he wasn't going to find anything in my head.
Alice, for her part, hovered near us leafing through a French high fashion magazine. "Mael, for the gala dinner of Esme's project, you definitely need something in midnight blue. It would highlight... well, it would highlight many things," she said with a spark of mischief in her eyes.
"Let's finish the blueprints first, Alice. One step at a time," I responded with a small smile.
Despite the tension I carried, being there with them was strangely comforting. I felt like a hypocrite; I knew what they were, I knew what they were capable of, and yet, I enjoyed their company. It was like sitting down to have tea with a storm: you know it can destroy you in a second, but for now, the sound of the rain is nice.
I said goodbye to Esme around seven. The forest was dark and the mist was beginning to lick the Chevy's tires as I drove back to Forks. Upon arriving, I saw that Edward's car wasn't there, but the house lights were on. I went in expecting to find Charlie having dinner in front of the TV, but only Bella was in the kitchen, washing a cup with agonizing slowness.
She looked... different. Her cheeks were a bit rosy despite the cold, and she had the look of someone who had just discovered a new continent.
"Hey, Bells," I said, leaving the keys on the table. "How was your day?"
She startled a bit, as if she hadn't heard me come in. "Oh, hi Mael. Fine... we were out and about."
"'Out and about'? You missed an entire day of classes, you're not like that," I blurted out, trying to sound like the usual worried older brother. "Edward and you seem to have become very close all of a sudden."
Bella put down the cup and dried her hands on her jeans. She looked me in the eyes, but I felt her gaze was piercing through me. "We just... hung out, Mael. We talked about a lot of things. We had a lot to catch up on."
"It must have been very important things to skip school," I replied, narrowing my eyes. "Bella, you know you can tell me anything, right? That guy... he's weird. I'm not saying he's bad, but he's not like us."
She tensed for a microsecond. A gesture so small that only someone who has known her all her life would notice. "He's different, yes. But he's good, Mael. Truly. You don't have to worry about me. We just talked, it was a long talk, that's all."
"We just talked." That was the biggest lie of the year. I knew perfectly well that Edward had dropped the bomb on her. I knew that Bella now carried the secret of fangs and blood, just like me, but with one key difference: she believed she was in a romance novel, and I knew I was in a war zone.
"Alright," I said, giving up for now. "If you say so. I'm going to reheat some pizza."
I turned around to go to the refrigerator, but inside my mind was working a mile a minute. Edward had told her the truth. That meant she was now part of the circle. My little sister was having romantic feelings for a living corpse, and I was the only one who had the power to protect her if that love turned bloody.
That night, as I went to bed, my mental shield felt more solid than ever. I visualized Charlie's house, and the two shields covering everything. If Edward thought he could enter our family and take Bella away without consequences, he was very wrong. I would watch them. All of them. Because in Forks, the sun might come out once in a while, but the shadows never fully left.
I increased the intensity of my internal shields before closing my eyes. It was no longer just about the money or the art. Now it was a field surveillance.
The next day I planned to go out and hunt vampires. I know it's dangerous, but only in life-or-death situations can I develop my powers faster and safely protect my family. But it so happened that Bella decided to wash the truck that day, and because of that, I had to stay home while she flirted with Edward. Everything was going well until there was only silence, which worried me.
So I left the house to see what was happening. She was still there but Edward's car was gone, and now there was only Billy Black's truck along with Jacob, so I approached them.
"Hi, how are you Billy!" I said while shaking his hand, and I did the same with Jacob. "Coming to see the game? My dad should be coming out soon."
"Hi Mael, glad to see you! Yes, Jacob came along because he wanted to spend time with Bella." He said it in such a simple way it seemed like he was talking about the weather, but I could see Jacob was uncomfortable, looking away.
"Well, I'll stay to supervise, but I'm going to take a ride to the beach at the reservation," I said as I got into the truck.
"But I haven't finished washing it yet!" Bella complained, while sending me a look so I wouldn't leave her alone, but I ignored her and started the engine.
"I'll finish cleaning it later! See you later!" was the last thing I said as I drove away and waved my hand.
I drove along the road that led to La Push with my arm resting on the window, letting the cold afternoon air clear my head. In the rearview mirror, I saw Bella's figure grow small next to Jacob and Billy. I knew she was going to hate me for leaving her there alone "socializing," but the truth is my head was elsewhere.
The encounter with that guy in Port Angeles had changed my mindset. I could no longer sit and watch TV or draw little trees as if nothing were happening. I felt like I was running out of time. If there was one of those guys wandering around, more could come. And although the Cullens seemed like "the good ones," they were still predators. I needed to be stronger, and I needed it yesterday.
I reached the reservation and parked the Chevy in a secluded corner of First Beach, away from where the tourists or local kids gathered. The sea was rough today; the waves hit the rocks with a violence that made the ground vibrate. It was perfect.
I got out of the truck and walked toward the shore. I didn't take off my clothes; there was no point. I concentrated and activated the second skin before the first spray of water touched me. This time I made it denser, more compact.
"Let's see how much you can take," I whispered to myself.
I stepped into the water. The cold tried to bite, but my shield kept it at bay. I kept walking until the water reached my waist, and then, without hesitation, I submerged myself completely.
The idea was simple but brutal: water pressure. If I could maintain my shield while tons of water tried to crush me, when I was on dry land, I would be invincible. Swimming with difficulty toward a deeper area, I felt how the sea tried to compress my energy.
I expanded the shield to a three-meter radius. Underwater, the blue bubble glowed with a ghostly light, illuminating the seaweed and dark rocks. It was beautiful, but painful. The pressure of the ocean was constant, a uniform push coming from everywhere. I felt my mental "sun" begin to flicker. The water was heavy, and every second that passed was like someone was putting gym weights on my shoulders.
"Hold it..." I ordered myself mentally, clenching my teeth underwater.
I started going deeper, looking for where the depth was greater. At about five meters, the effort became an agony. My head started to throb with that familiar vibration. But I didn't stop. I took advantage of that moment to practice my new abilities: the blades.
I flattened part of the bubble and launched it against a submerged rock. The shield sliced through the water and the stone with an ease that gave me chills. Then, I tried to create a second small shield outside the main one. Maintaining two structures under the pressure of the sea was like trying to hold up two trucks with one arm.
The headache returned, but this time I welcomed it like an old friend. It was the sign that the mental muscle was tearing in order to grow.
After what felt like hours (though it was probably only forty minutes), my lungs began to burn—a sign that the oxygen I had in those three meters was running out and my energy was on its last legs. I came to the surface gasping, gulping cold air as if it were pure oxygen. My shield contracted to stay over my body covering my clothes, but I faltered for a moment, making me get wet, but with a crazy smile on my face.
The mental energy felt exhausted, but more solid. I had withstood the pressure of the sea.
But I wasn't finished yet; I waited a while to recharge energy and dived back in, swimming deeper with each attempt.
By the time I came out from my fifth attempt, I was completely exhausted.
I went back to the Chevy and turned the heater to the max. As I drove back home, with my hair dripping and clothes clinging to my body, I felt lighter. I knew that if that red-eyed vampire appeared again, this time it wouldn't take me so long to finish him.
When I got to the house, Billy's car was gone. Bella was on the porch, arms crossed and with a look of few friends that was scary.
"You left me alone with Jacob and Billy," she said as soon as I got out, looking me up and down. "And you're soaking wet! What the hell were you doing, Mael? Did you fall off a cliff?"
"I went for a little swim, Bells. I needed to clear my head," I said, shrugging, trying to sound casual. "Besides, Jacob is a good kid, I'm sure you had fun talking about... I don't know, school."
"I hate you," she muttered, though she threw a dry towel at me that she had handy. "Get inside before you get pneumonia and Dad blames me."
I entered the house feeling the warmth of home. Bella went back to her things, probably to keep thinking about Edward, but I went straight to my room. I looked in the mirror and saw that my eyes looked brighter, more alive.
I sat on the bed and closed my eyes for a moment to check my mental house. The shields were still there; I no longer needed to be mindful of them to keep them up. It shone with a new strength. Because now I knew I could not only protect myself, but I could be the shield that Bella didn't know she needed.
I ate what Bella left me in the oven and what was left of the lemon pie—which, by the way, was still delicious—and I fell asleep with the feeling that, little by little, I was ceasing to be the prey to become something much more dangerous.