Placing my hand upon the basement door, I mutter a spell to add another layer of protection. Now unless if the person is me, no one can enter or exit the barrier around the basement. I do this for a few reasons. One: I need to figure out more about what the fuck is in the basement then go to Trick and ask him about it. Two: Bella has been known to going into places she shouldn't so I'm technically helping her even though I kind of don't want to. Three: Until Uncle Charlie confesses to what he knows, he is staying out of the basement as well. I know the key to the basement is around his keychain so I've hidden it. The key.

Walking outside leaning against the side of the house as Charlie pulled his cop cruiser into the side of the road on the lawn. He and this thin looking teenager gets out of the cruiser, the teenager is very thin. She has dull dark brown hair with some red undertones, the red isn't that obvious but if you look close enough you can see it. She has pale skin, ivory if I had to guess. Guess she doesn't spend much time out of the house since people in Arizona normally aren't as pale as she is. She looks to be about the same height as Jessica, maybe a couple inches taller with chocolate brown eyes like Uncle Charlie.

Walking down the steps when Uncle Charlie waves me over, grabbing two of the bag "Bella" Charlie motions to me, the teenager looks at me nervously. From the moment she got out of the car she has been nervous and conflicted about being here "do you remember your cousin Mallory?"

She looks my way "Hi" she stares at me holding her small cactus close "I remember, how are you and your mom doing?"

"My mom's dead" it's clear she didn't know that, maybe she has changed. Only time will tell with her "died a few years ago"

"I" Charlie explains "never told Bella"

"Why would you?" Closing the trunk once the bags are out, Bella flinched back from the force of the trunk "last I checked my mom meant nothing to you, either of you" lookin to Bella as she stared at me "I have a greenhouse over there" she looks to my greenhouse that I had built, it's big enough for the herbs I need that you can't normally get in stores and takes a long time to find "if you want, you can plant your cactus there. I have a small cactus garden"

"Thank you" she looks between me and Charlie "I'd like that and I'm sorry to hear about your mom, she was really beautiful from what I remember"

"She was" storming into the house, some tears fall so I quickly wipe them before Charlie or Bella can see. Setting her bags on her bed, I managed to have this be like a college dorm room. Two XL twin sized beds against the wall with some storage underneath the beds.

"I cleared off" hearing footsteps come up the stairs "some shelves in the bathroom"

"Oh right" Bella realizes as she walks into the room seeing how we're sharing one "one bathroom. Um...which bed"

"This one is your bed" pointing to the bed to the left of the room, while my bed is to the right. There are two windows and next to each are desks, mine is the one looking out to the woods while Bella's is more towards the road but she's still looking out into the woods. There are just some houses in the way "Uncle Charlie got you your bedding" the sales lady suggested he get a dark purple colored comforter, my comforter is green since I like the color green.

"The sales lady" Uncle Charlie has his hands on his hips "picked out the bedding and stuff, you like purple right?"

"Purple's cool" she nods her head, she looks at one of my paintings on the wall "did you paint this?"

"Yeah" nodding my head

"It's really beautiful...and sad" she's looking at my one painting which is a black swan along in a pond with fog surrounding the pond, the dark pond where it's dusk. You've got a bit of light but that light is the fog.

"Okay" Uncle Charlie leaves the room "I'll leave you girls to it" before he leaves, he looks Bella in the eyes "Bella, don't go to the basement. The basement is off limits, am I clear?"

She nods her head "Yeah" he leaves after briefly looking to me, Bella looks my way "why is the basement off limits?"

"I was hoping you could tell me" she pressed her lips together shaking her head confused "Uncle Charlie has the basement door locked, the only key is on his keychain"

"But why?" She sets her cactus plant down on her desk "Are you okay with us being roommates?"

"Yeah, had a roommate since I was eight" sitting down on the bed "boarding school"

"Right" she unpacks her things, sitting on my bed "why" she stops turning to me "are you living in Forks, I thought you and Charlie didn't get along?"

"Like you and him?" Tilting my head, she stares at me "for personal reasons, moving here was a last option. Trust me Bella, if I had the choice I wouldn't live here. Sure I'd go to school here but living in this house? No" there was always something off about this house, now that I know that there's these evil creatures in the basement I'm going to get down to the bottom of it "why did you come here? Last I checked you here pretty much everything about this house"

"Only option" she lets out a long sigh "my mom got remarried and I knew she wanted to be on the road with Phil, even before but couldn't because of me. So here I am"

We are silent again before offering "Get a portable shower caddy" she looks my way "trust me when I say, there isn't enough room in the bathroom for more than a few girly items like tampons or pads"

"Thanks" she nods her head "I'll get one"

Hearing a honking of a vehicle we look out the window seeing Billy Black and Jacob Black here, god I hate Billy. The only consolation is knowing he is pained to forever know he killed the woman he loves and destroyed his ability to walk.

Billy and Jacob both have tan colored skin with long black hair and dark brown eyes, Billy always wears a cowboy hat. Why? Don't ask me. Jacob? He's got a major crush on Bella, has since we were all young. Besides them I notice the reddish orange pickup truck that Jacob has been working on for months.

Leaving the house with Bella just as Keith and Lucas arrive, Bella goes over to Billy first "Bella" leaning against the railing of the steps "you remember Billy Black?" Both Jacob and Billy are smiling at her, Jacob because I see his silly crush is still here.

"Yeah, you're looking good" they shake hands as Keith and Lucas walk over.

"And you remember Keith Scott and his nephew Lucas?" Charlie asks

"Yeah" she shakes hands with them "it's nice seeing you all again"

"I'm still dancing" Billy leans back, looking to Charlie "I'm glad you're finally here. Charlie here hasn't shut up about it since you told him you were coming" Charlie looks away a bit embarrassed.

"Yeah" Keith agrees "called me ten times yesterday to make sure his gift for you worked"

Bella lets out a confused laugh as Charlie pushes Billy into the road, the two dance fight and Keith joins in when Charlie looks his way "Are they" Bella asks "always like that?"

"Gets worse" they see me walk over "with age"

"Hi" Jacob introduces himself stuttering a bit "I'm Jacob, we use to make mud pies when we were little"

"Yeah" nodding her head as Jacob smiles brightly "no, I remember" looking at Lucas "your mom owns a cafe right?"

"Yeah" Lucas nods his head "Karen's Cafe"

"So" Charlie pats the truck "what do you think?"

"What?" She asks

"Your homecoming present" he proudly says

"This?!" She looks to the truck excited.

"Just bought it off Billy here" he confirms "and I had Keith make sure the engine was working well since he owns his own auto body shop"

"It's perfect!" She screeches "Oh my god!" She and Jacob go into the truck leaving me and Lucas out here.

"Hi Mallory" Billy says

Looking to Lucas "we have that project for history"

"We do?" He asks as I pull him into the house, once in my bedroom that is now also Bella's "I never asked, why do you not like Billy Black?"

Looking outside briefly listening to the men talk with my hearing, Billy shakes his head "Why won't she forgive you already?" I hear Charlie ask

"She feels robbed" Keith leans against the truck "everyone is different guys, some people will forgive and some people won't. For Mal" he holds his hands out "she may never forgive, have you taken her to therapy Charlie?"

"Do you think I should?" He asks

Keith nods his head "Yeah, especially with her scars"

Charlie looks confused "What scars?"

Keith takes him aside and lowly says that I can barely make it out "Charlie, Mallory has whip marks on her back. Like she was being abused" I look away when Uncle Charlie looked up to the bedroom "Charlie? Did Mallory ever disclose why she wanted to live here? If I were you I'd find out why she isn't talking about her maternal family"

"Billy's the reason my dad is dead" Lucas stares at me before we sit down on my bed "the drunk driver who killed my dad was Billy, I can barely look at him...every time I play in the games it feels like my dad is there. Watching me. It's why I play" wiping away the tears that fall, Lucas rubs my back as I try to reign my tears back in "can we talk about something else?"

"Bella is not as klutzy as I remembered her to be" a snort escapes me and we see Nathan enter the room with Bella and Jacob "hey guys"

"This room" Nathan sits down in a chair "does not look big enough for two people"

"Trust me, it's not" crossing my legs as I look at Bella "so Bella? Do you play sports?"

She lets out a laugh shaking her head no "Sports and I don't mix, sports don't help the uncoordinated. I cook though"

After some time Bella went to the bathroom and Jacob looks my way when I snort "What?" He asks

"You're like a love sick puppy" Nathan and Lucas nod their heads in agreement.

"Am not" he says

"You are" Nathan leans back smirking "just ask her out"

"I'm not you" we see Bella come back in and Jacob stood up quickly bumping into her causing them to fall to the floor, covering my mouth shaking with laughter "sorry"

"It's alright" Bella assured him, she looks over at a photo "Who's that?" Looking to the photo of me and my ex boyfriend, Professor Maxwell Sienna.

"Professor Sienna" this smirk is on my face

"Professor?" Lucas asks "You and he look quite cozy"

"That's because we use to date" Nathan coughs on his water, I have a mini fridge up here that I keep stocked "his younger brother Roman who was in the same grade as me and my cousin Hope, Roman and Hope use to date"

"You slept with a teacher?" Jacob asks

"There was no sleeping" scoffing at that "there was fucking" Nathan laughs as Bella stares at me shocked "what? I love older men, I find most of the men our age nothing but immature. No offense"

"None taken" the guys say

"You said dated" Lucas looks at me "what happened?"

"Oh" waving my hand "my Uncle Klaus and now Uncle Marcel killed him" their eyes widen in shock "sad too...he was an amazing fuck"

"Who" looking over seeing Brian in the doorway "was an amazing fuck?"

"Brian" standing up and going over to hug him, he hugs me back then gives Lucas a brief bro hug. He nods his head to Nathan "Bella this is Brian, I'm not sure either of you met"

"Hi" Brian waves his hand to Bella

Brian O'Conner. Part of the FBI now. He has short blonde hair with blue eyes and light tan skin, he stands at about six foot and is a race car driver. Spends most of his time now doing a bunch of cases.

❤️‍🩹

"What are we doing here?" Brian took me to Seattle to get some ice cream, Charlie and Brian knows about the scars I carry. I overheard Brian saying how he could get me to open up more than Charlie could.

"Getting ice cream" we sit down after getting some "Mal? Why are you living with Charlie? You and he have never exactly had a close relationship and your mom made it clear in hating him"

"My mom's family doesn't abuse me if that's what you're asking" I really love Mint Fudge Ice Cream, so good "there's just...my cousin Hope is going through this depressed state and my family is more worried about her than me at the moment and my ex girlfriend all but moved away and this guy I had a crush on after Penelope and I broke up, he is into my cousin Hope. A few years ago I was kidnapped along with my mom" my voice cracking a bit "for two months my mom and I were tortured, she died before me and I was left with her corpse for three days before my uncle saved me"

My powers started to rise and I try to rein them in, Brian takes my hand and some tears slip. Taking in deep breaths calming down "It's why I'm prescribed medical marijuana, because I have PTSD"

"I'm sorry that happened" he says "why wasn't a police report filed?"

"Because my uncle killed the people who did this" I answer "there was no reason to file one since all the people are dead"