Jasper raised an eyebrow at my answer, genuine surprise flashing across his face before his usual composure returned. Several others around the room wore similar expressions, a kind of recalibration happening behind their eyes. Carlisle looked thoughtful now, studying me with even greater interest.
For a few seconds, silence settled over the room.
Emmett was the first to break it. A slow grin spread across his face, and he said, "Good. We'll have to test what you're made of."
The tone was light, playful even, but there was something underneath it. Excitement. Curiosity. The thrill of finally meeting something that might actually challenge him, or at least make life a little more interesting.
I smiled back at him. "Just remember," I said calmly, "you're the one who asked for that."
Emmett's grin widened immediately, though this time it looked sharper, more anticipatory.
Alice nudged me lightly from the left. I turned to look at her, and she met my eyes with an expression that was trying its best to look serious and mostly succeeding at looking adorable. "Today you're mine. I already have to suffer through missing you tomorrow."
I squeezed her hand and let my voice carry just far enough to reach another set of ears across the room. "Don't worry, dear. I don't think he's lacking time." My eyes flickered briefly toward Emmett. "Maybe patience. But not time."
Alice giggled. Several smiles appeared around the room. Even Rosalie's lips twitched faintly upward before she caught herself.
Emmett exhaled in a long, theatrical sigh and leaned back into the couch as though deeply wronged.
"Wow," he muttered, shaking his head. "I'm getting attacked in my own home."
The atmosphere softened considerably after that.
I let the moment settle, then turned my attention back to Rosalie. "So," I said, keeping my tone easy, "was that enough to fill those gaps?"
She held my gaze, but her initial certainty had clearly begun to waver. The sharp hostility in her expression softened, leaving her visibly unsure of her footing. The knowledge that I'd killed vampires for that information still troubled her, but the certainty she'd approached the conversation had become harder to maintain. After a moment, she looked away.
"It did," she admitted.
Emmett immediately pulled her a little closer against his side in silent reassurance.
Esme's posture relaxed, and a quiet warmth returned to her face.
After that, as if by some unspoken agreement, the conversation naturally drifted to easier topics. We talked about Forks, school, the weather, absurdly small local gossip that Emmett somehow found entertaining, and a dozen other ordinary things.
I had almost settled into the rhythm of it when Edythe asked a question that caught me off guard.
"Sorry, Samael, for being direct," she said, looking at me steadily, "but this is actually important—did you properly launder the money before buying the car?"
I looked at her for a moment. "Sorry?"
Carlisle stepped in, his tone measured. "I believe Edythe assumes that, given your age and the fact that your family wasn't wealthy, the funds you've been working with may have come from the coven you encountered."
Edythe gave a small nod to confirm it and continued watching me.
Alice turned slightly toward me. Her expression was gentle and careful, trying to soften the moment. "She has a point, darling. If that's where the money came from, spending it on something this expensive, without making it clean first, could create legal problems."
Before I could answer, my phone buzzed in my pocket.
I reached in and pulled out my Motorola, flipping it open.
Alfred.
I looked at the screen for a brief moment, then pressed 'end' and closed the phone. I was with Alice, business could wait.
A second later, it rang once more. My expression sharpened, and my brows furrowed.
Alfred didn't call twice without a reason. It was an agreement we'd made early on: two calls meant an immediate decision was needed, or something had gone wrong. I exhaled through my nose, glanced at Alice, and gave her a small smile.
"Well," I said, "this might actually answer your question."
She looked at me with a question she didn't voice. Around the room, several others wore similarly curious expressions. I opened the phone and answered.
"I'm a little busy right now. Something happened, Alfred?"
"I apologise for the interruption, sir." His voice was composed, as it always was. "You instructed me to notify you personally once the task was completed."
"I'm listening."
What I didn't notice at first was the reaction around me.
Alice, especially, was staring.
My demeanour had changed.
Normally, even when calm, there was warmth in my expression around her. But now every trace of it was gone.
Even at school, when I wasn't around Alice, there was usually a certain ease to my expression. This was different. My face had become unreadable, my voice colder and more precise.
"It concerns the small startup you tasked me to arrange a meeting with," Alfred continued. "YouTube."
"Yes," I said. "Did you succeed?"
"Affirmative, sir. Though I must admit, based on my research, I fail to understand the interest. The platform appears to be little more than an online dating service. I do not foresee significant growth."
A smile touched my lips, different this time, colder.
"And it won't remain one," I replied. "Its future purpose is different. That's not something you need to concern yourself with for now."
"I understand."
There was a brief pause, followed by the faint sound of papers shifting.
"As instructed, I secured the earliest possible meeting. You are scheduled to meet their executive on Tuesday at eleven am in San Mateo."
"Good. I'll be there."
"Prepare cash and all documentation required for an equity investment," I added.
"For what amount?"
"Eight hundred thousand should be sufficient to begin with."
The sound of a pen on paper came through the phone. " I will assign one of our staff to deliver everything to you at the location." A brief pause, and then: "My only reservation, for the record, is that I don't quite see why your presence there is necessary."
"It has to be done this way," I said evenly. "And it's not a criticism of your abilities. This situation simply doesn't allow room for failure."
"I understand."
"Is there anything else?"
"No, sir. That will be all."
"Good. Have a good evening, Alfred."
"You too, Mr Ashborn."
I closed the phone and lowered it slowly.
Edythe looked genuinely lost for once. Her original question had been answered, yes. That much was clear. What was equally clear was that she now had considerably more questions. Most of the others present seemed to be in the same position.
I held Edythe's gaze and let a small smile settle on my face.
"You don't need to worry about my financial situation," I said, "or about the legitimacy of the funds. I've never used anything acquired from those vampires."
Every person in the room was watching me. The feeling was oddly similar to when I had revealed my claws earlier, except this time the surprise was mixed with genuine confusion, puzzlement, mostly.
Alice was not among them.
She looked entirely unbothered by any of it. The bond between us had formed absurdly quickly, leaving little room for doubt or hesitation on either side.
"Darling," she said, "who is Alfred?"
I looked at her, and the colder edge in my demeanour faded almost instantly.
"He's the CEO of a company I started about six months ago," I said.
Alice blinked. "You founded a company?"
"I did."
"What does it do?"
"Investments, primarily. Though we're also setting up electronics production, that side of things should be running soon."
She listened with complete attention, entirely fascinated. And honestly... she was distractingly adorable when she looked at me like that.
For a moment, I forgot everyone else was still in the room.
A quiet cough broke the moment. I looked up. It was Carlisle, wearing a politely amused expression.
Alice noticed too.
Yet it didn't seem to trouble her in the slightest.
She simply moved closer, wrapped both arms around my torso, and leaned against me comfortably as I settled my hand over her waist.
Esme smiled warmly at the sight.
Carlisle said, "I can only say that I'm genuinely impressed, Samael. Building a company at your age, without any external support, is not a small thing. Though I suspect the timeline isn't entirely unconnected to when you first came into your abilities."
"You're right," I said. "Simply put, it considerably enhanced my learning capabilities."
He raised an eyebrow, and I could see interest replacing any lingering caution in the room. The last traces of suspicion had mostly disappeared, replaced now by curiosity.
Then Alice rose to her feet, her hand already holding mine.
"Right," she said, smiling. "They've definitely kept you long enough. Come on. I'll show you around the house." She gave my hand a light but purposeful tug.
I stood, laughing quietly. "Lead the way."
No one said anything as she pulled me from the room and toward the stairs. I could feel several pairs of eyes on our backs, and I didn't mind them.
[Hi everyone! I'm back!!!]
[Why didn't I post a new chapter for so long? Long story short: I got sick, fell behind on my university deadlines, and had to pause writing for a while. Sorry for the delay!]