CHAPTER 24
THAT BLOODSUCKER

MARGO figured that her life couldn't get any weirder after finding out her boyfriend was a werewolf. But then she was told that vampires exist too – oh, and her wolf boyfriend is basically her meant-to-be soul mate. Just the thought alone could make any seventeen-year-old have a mental breakdown, and even someone as level-headed as Margo couldn't take the reality.

Regardless, she knew it was something to accept. As difficult as it was to think about, Margo did see her boyfriend turn into a wolf, and she had the scar to prove it. And she did trust him more than anything, so she believed him fully about the vampire problem, not to mention that she had the same conclusion just last year. But the idea of soul mates still hung in the air like pollen. She decided not to dwell on it until graduation, and then she'd be ... gone.

Margo had these thoughts running through her brain as she passed through the crowds of Forks high school. She still held the banana Jenny shoved into her hands before she left. Margo didn't have time to eat it, nor was she hungry. She sighed heavily as she crossed the twisted halls, and eventually walked towards her locker. Pulling out her books and placing them in her bag, Margo then turned to look down the corridor. Her eyes scanned the area from the barrier of her locker, and she spotted Bella Swan leaning against where Edward Cullen's locker used to be. Margo swallowed hard.

"Hey."

Margo blinked quickly, turning to see Melinda frowning on her left. She threw her banana into her backpack, allowing it to become smushed. Melinda slumped her back against the locker near Margo's and sighed with a sad expression. "How's the scar been?"

"Fully healed. Me and Jacob are ... well, as normal as we can be," she added, looking over her shoulder at Bella again. "You seem upset. What's wrong?"

When Margo turned back to Melinda, she saw her friend's furrowed brow. "Embry told me on the phone we can't see each other anymore," she huffed. "He knows that I know a simplified version of what's going on, so he was only allowed to tell me that Sam wanted the relationship to end. That fucker." Melinda wrinkled her nose when she noticed Margo looking back at Bella Swan from across the hall. "You distracted by something?"

Margo spun around again, smiling nervously. "Um – yeah," she cleared her throat. "I know it all sucks, but what Sam's doing is for your own good. Trust me." Margo then shut her locker, slinging her bag over her shoulder as she pointed to Bella with her thumbs. "I'm gonna go talk to Bella. It's important."

"More important than my failing love life?" Melinda exclaimed.

Margo shrugged. "That's for you to decide, Mel."

Once Margo spun back to walk in front of her, she found Bella's eyes resting on her. Bella stood up straight, put on her best fake smile, and waved towards Margo. The other brunette rushed forward as Bella said, "Hey, Mar –"

She couldn't even get out her greeting, due to Margo already dragging Bella to the nearest bathroom. When they were inside the two-stall bathroom, Margo spotted three girls by the sinks, and they looked up at Margo with a narrowed gaze. "Get out," Margo ordered proudly. The girls knitted their brows together. "I said, get out!"

Eventually, the three girls scoffed and left, wringing out their damp hands. Margo rolled her eyes, setting down her back pack before looking in the two empty stalls. No one. They were alone. She turned back to Bella, who was standing in the middle of the bathroom with a confused expression. "Margo," she called, "what are you –?"

"I know, Bella." Margo whispered softly. "I know about the Cullens."

Bella's eyes held nothing but confusion for a long moment, but when the reality of the situation hit her, her facial expression relaxed. She felt a sigh of relief exude from her lungs. She had never felt so relieved in her life, and although Margo hadn't explained yet what she knew, just her inclination had Bella reassured.

"You know ..." Bella's words trailed off.

"I know about them being ..." Margo held up two fingers close to her teeth, insinuating fangs.

Bella released a short chuckle. She didn't want to reply exactly, so she only grabbed Margo's hand, squeezing it with a nod. That was enough for Margo to know that it was all true.

"Do you also know about Jake?" Margo asked.

"I put the pieces together last week," Bella whispered, moving closer. "I had been noticing his changes since February, just like you had. And then I saw these huge wolves in the forests along La Push, like the size of bears. They saved me from ... well, from a vampire that the Cullens thought was trustworthy. They were wrong." She sighed, and she was suddenly eyeing Margo's chin. "And when I saw your new scar, it suddenly made me remember Jacob's story about his ancestors."

Margo's hand suddenly went to her chin. After realizing her gesture came off as self-conscious, she lowered her hand and cleared her throat softly.

"Sorry, I didn't know that would upset you."

Margo lifted her hand. "No, it's okay. Did you confront Jake about everything?"

Bella snorted quietly. "Yeah, it didn't exactly go over well, but that was my fault. His – I don't know – pack brother, Paul, got angry with my response and shifted right in front of me."

Margo was ready to reply again, but after thinking over Bella's words from before, she stepped closer. Her voice lowered even more. "You said something about a vampire in the La Push forests. Could that have been the vampire that made Jake begin to phase? The presence of a vampire –"

"Triggers phasing," Bella added with a smile. "I did my research too." She laughed slightly. "I don't think so. That particular vampire, Laurent, arrived in town after Jacob's phasing, I believe."

"So there's another one of them?"

Bella nodded, her expression turning ominous. Every bone in Bella's body shook as her mind raced with thoughts of a specific rogue vampire hanging over her bed at night. Just the idea made her teeth chatter. "Her name's Victoria," she finally answered. "Her mate, James, hunted me last year, and to stop the hunt, the Cullens had to kill him. I was always afraid she'd come back to me for revenge. Jacob told me last week that she's been seen around the Canadian border, so I guess I was right all along."

Margo's eyes blinked rapidly. "So Victoria's presence was what made Jake turn ..." Her voice trailed off, but a grin soon spread on her face. Margo grabbed Bella's shoulders and shook her. "Bella, you're a genius!"

Bella laughed awkwardly. "I'm just glad I can finally share this with someone," she smiled, "but I'm definitely not as much of a genius as you."

"Trust me, Bells," Margo replied, "it took my boyfriend shifting in front of me to figure out something was wrong with him. I'm clearly not that much of a genius anymore."

•••

A few days later, Margo ran down the stairs of her house and grabbed her keys. Jenny, clearly, questioned her on her whereabouts, even though she knew her niece would be obviously seeing her boyfriend. Jenny felt upset, since she spent so much time making homemade tomato sauce, but she wasn't blind enough to notice that her niece had been spending more time than usual over Jacob's. It made her wonder things, but she allowed Margo to go regardless. She wasn't going to baby her.

But alas, the last thing Margo expected before departing her house was to get a call from Jacob, asking her to meet at his house in a black dress. "Why?" Margo asked, slightly annoyed. "I was wearing sweats because it's raining out."

"Harry Clearwater had a heart attack," Jacob answered, static engulfing the speaker on her cellphone. "I just ... I'm going over his home to talk with his family. I need you to be there."

Margo nodded quickly. "I'll be there," she said before hanging up. Margo had never met this Harry Clearwater, but she could tell that he meant something to Jacob and the tribe. However, she didn't know if her going was for emotional support, or because she was directly involved with the reservation now that she Jacob's imprint. She guessed it was a bit of both.

Upon telling Jenny the problem, her aunt hung up her kitchen apron and pattered her feet up the stairs to her bedroom. She took out a straight-lined black dress with a square neckline, which Margo took to pair with a gray cardigan and some comfy flats. Margo felt her feet get wet when her flats splashed in the puddles outside, but she couldn't do much about it. She revved her engine to life, and pulled out of the driveway to head to the reservation.

When Margo arrived at Jacob's house, he engulfed her in a huge hug. Margo sighed against his warm skin, but did take notice in his oddly wet hair, accompanied by a tightly-fitting suit. She guessed it was from the rain. Jacob then walked with her to the van and slid himself in the passenger's seat. He gave her simple directions to Harry's house, but made sure to hold her hand the entire time. It was the only way he didn't think about the matter.

Jacob informed Margo that Harry Clearwater was a good friend to Billy and Bella's dad. "He mentioned to Billy once that had been having heart problems, but he also joked about it to make it appear insignificant." Jacob sighed and shook his head. "Early today, Charlie devised a search team across the forests for the 'wolves' Bella reported about weeks ago. Somehow, the pack had ended up in the same vicinity, chasing down a vampire who we think is trying to get to Bella –"

"You mean Victoria?" Margo turned her head for a second. "Sorry, Bella informed me."

"Yeah, that bloodsucker," Jacob scoffed, like venom was placed in between his teeth. "She had finally crossed into our lands, and I was so close to getting her. But Charlie reported that while they were on the hunt for the wolves, Harry began to convulse and had a heart attack."

Margo pulled into a small, yellow-shingled house, overlooking Second Beach. She sat there for a moment, tightly gripping the stirring wheel. She grabbed Jacob's hand that she once let go, and she squeezed his fingers. "Things will get easier," she promised before slipping out of the van and locking the car.

Jacob hopped out and locked his hand in Margo's again. "Not exactly," he replied as they walked to the house slowly. "Harry had an important seat on the Quileute Council. It's now gonna be filled by his wife, who will take care of humans that know about the shape shifting world."

Margo wanted to reply, Like me, but she decided to keep quiet. That and, as soon as she entered the Clearwater abode, she was embraced tightly by Harry's widow, Sue. It was like Margo had a defined scent, and Sue knew almost instantly who she was. Sue didn't even acknowledge Jacob's presence until after hugging Margo, and when she looked at her, her eyes reflected with recognition. Margo stared at Sue blankly, taking a moment to finally say, "Hi, I'm –"

"Margaret," Sue smiled warmly, placing her hands on Margo's cheeks. Her eyes were rimmed with red to reveal her past tears. "Jacob has said so much about you. I'm so happy for you both."

"That's enough, Sue," Jacob sighed, walking around his girlfriend to embrace the older woman. Sue placed her face on Jacob's warm chest, which instantly calmed her. "And her name is Margo. I've told you this, like, twenty times."

Sue sighed heavily through her nostrils. "Can you let a grieving widow have a break?" As soon as the word, "widow," fell from her lips, Sue covered his mouth. She tried to hide a sob, but it was strangely apparent. "Thank you for coming. I've been surrounded by groups all day, so having just you two feels refreshing. I can't thank you enough for your support."

"I'll be here for you, Sue," Jacob assured, "and so will my dad."

Sue smiled softly. "Billy just left actually, along with Charlie." She then walked around the small, one floor home. The front door led directly to the living room and kitchen area, and the rest of the house was hidden by a darkened hallway. Sue walked around the kitchen table. "Can I make you both tea?"

"Definitely," Jacob grinned, releasing Margo's hand to walk forward.

Margo almost felt like a fish out of water. She knew that her being an imprint suddenly made her involved with Jacob's tribe, but she still felt so ... awkward. Maybe it was because she felt that this was a life she never planned to have, and Margo was certainly a planner. Her upcoming high school graduation date and plans to move to college soon were grossly noticeable in that moment.

But when Sue looked up at Margo from the kettle in the kitchen, she smiled so warmly that Margo was sure that she was made of pure sunshine. "Come over, Margo. Sit down with us," she welcomed. And it was then that Margo truly felt that she found a family on the reservation.