I knew something was wrong the moment the trees thinned out.
The road curved upward.
The forest opened.
And a very large, very modern house appeared between the trees like someone had dropped an architecture magazine into the woods.
I slowed my steps.
"…Rosalie."
She didn't stop walking.
"I said quiet place," I continued mildly, "not your entire coven's headquarters."
She glanced back over her shoulder, golden eyes sharp.
"This is quiet."
I looked at the massive glass walls.
"At this point," I said to you, "I'm fairly certain vampires and I have very different definitions of subtle."
She ignored me and led the way up the steps.
The Cullen house loomed.
Beautiful. Clean. Too perfect.
A place that screamed we have nothing to hide while hiding everything.
As soon as we crossed the threshold—
I felt it.
Eyes.
So many eyes.
Not hostile.
Not yet.
Just… alert.
"Well," I sighed, stopping just inside the doorway. "So much for easing into the conversation."
Rosalie turned, arms crossed again.
"They deserve to know."
"I don't disagree," I said. "I just would've preferred fewer witnesses."
Right on cue—
Footsteps.
Edward appeared from the hallway, face unreadable, tension coiled tight beneath his calm.
Behind him—
Carlisle.
Calm. Composed. Curious.
The kind of man who looked like he'd calmly ask questions while dissecting a mystery and a patient at the same time.
Carlisle smiled warmly.
"You must be Adam," he said. "I'm Carlisle."
I nodded. "Nice house. Very… glass-forward."
Edward didn't smile.
"What are you?" he asked.
No preamble.
No politeness.
Straight to the throat.
Rosalie stiffened.
Carlisle sighed softly. "Edward—"
"It's fine," I said, holding up a hand.
I looked at Edward.
Really looked.
Golden eyes sharp with frustration. Guilt still clinging to him from the accident. A mind screaming constantly with other people's thoughts—
Except—
Not here.
Not around me.
Not around Rosalie.
Not around Alice.
I chuckled quietly.
"Wow," I said. "You really hate not knowing things, don't you?"
Edward's jaw tightened.
Carlisle studied me more closely now.
"You don't feel human," he said gently. "But you're not like us either."
"Correct," I replied. "On both counts."
I took a step forward, deliberately slow, non-threatening.
Shadows shifted faintly at my feet—not rising, not forming. Just… acknowledging me.
Rosalie noticed.
Edward noticed.
Carlisle definitely noticed.
"I control shadows," I said simply.
Silence fell.
Edward frowned. "That's it?"
I shrugged. "That's the short version."
Rosalie scoffed. "You expect us to believe that?"
"No," I said honestly. "I expect you to accept it."
Carlisle tilted his head. "Shadows aren't a species."
"Neither are you," I replied politely. "Yet here we are."
That earned me a surprised look.
Edward stepped closer.
"Then why can't I read your mind?"
Ah.
There it was.
I smiled.
"Because," I said, "my mind isn't exactly… local."
Edward froze.
"…What."
I glanced toward the upper floor.
"Same reason you can't read Alice's," I continued, "and why Rosalie's thoughts go fuzzy when emotions run high."
Rosalie snapped her head toward Edward. "You can't read me?"
Edward hesitated.
"…Not clearly."
Her eyes widened just a fraction.
I went on, voice calm.
"Think of it like this," I said. "Your ability listens to surface signals. Electrical impulses. Intent. Thought patterns."
I tapped my temple.
"Mine don't run on the same frequency."
Edward stared at me.
"And Alice?" he demanded.
I smiled.
"She cheats."
A beat.
Then Alice's laughter floated down from upstairs.
"I do not!" she called cheerfully.
Carlisle pinched the bridge of his nose.
"You're saying your abilities interfere with ours," he said thoughtfully.
"Yes," I replied. "Unintentionally. Mostly."
Edward's eyes flicked to Rosalie.
"…And the bond?"
Ah.
That.
The air shifted again.
He said it carefully.
"The mate bond," Edward continued. "Alice felt it. Rosalie felt it. You felt it."
Rosalie looked away.
Carlisle's expression tightened.
I exhaled slowly.
"That," I admitted, "was a surprise."
Edward's hands clenched. "Explain."
I considered my words.
"The bond isn't romantic," I said. "Not the way you're thinking."
Rosalie's head snapped back to me. "Then what is it?"
I met her gaze evenly.
"Recognition," I said. "Power acknowledging power. Something ancient brushing against something immortal."
Silence.
The shadows at my feet stilled completely.
"I didn't choose it," I added. "And I'm not acting on it."
Edward studied me intensely.
"You expect us to trust you."
I shrugged. "No. I expect you to observe me."
Carlisle smiled faintly.
"That's usually how trust begins."
Edward looked at him sharply. "Carlisle—"
"I don't sense malice," Carlisle said calmly. "And he hasn't lied yet."
Edward looked back at me.
"…Yet," he repeated.
I smiled thinly. "Fair."
Rosalie finally spoke again, voice quieter.
"You're dangerous."
"Yes," I agreed easily. "But not to you."
Edward scoffed. "You can't promise that."
"No," I said. "But I can promise this."
I lifted my hand slightly.
The shadows obeyed—curling, forming a perfect circle around my feet before sinking back into nothing.
"I don't hunt family," I said softly.
Carlisle's eyes sharpened.
"Family," he repeated.
I met his gaze.
"That's what you are," I said. "Whether you admit it or not."
The room stayed silent for a long moment.
Then Carlisle nodded once.
"Thank you for your honesty."
Edward didn't relax.
Rosalie didn't either.
But neither of them attacked me.
Which, frankly, I counted as a win.
I glanced around.
"So," I said lightly, breaking the tension, "next time—maybe we pick a truly quiet place?"
Alice giggled upstairs again.
Edward glared.
And somewhere deep inside—
The Monarch watched.
Patient.
[Chapter Ten Complete.]