An Inconvenient Flame

Epilogue - It's A Small World

18 Years Later

Jacob laughed at something his Aunt Jenna said as he relaxed by the beach. She was a cursing storm that afternoon and Layla was happily collecting her coins even after all these years. His entire family was present for the biannual trip to Madeira, Portugal. 

His mother had fallen in love with it when she and his father were on their honeymoon and vowed that they would all do the same. She was right. They had been coming back every other year since he was three years old.

Jacob loved it in Portugal. The food, the people. It was loud and fun which he thoroughly enjoyed but as he looked at his brother Jaxon he couldn't help but chuckle at his misery. 

Jaxon and Jacob were alike but different. They weren't twins, but they might as well be with only a two month age difference.

Jacob was well aware that his parents weren't his biological parents. His biological mother was nothing good given the things he read about her online. She was a racist that happened to be murdered by a madman. That's all he knew and that's all he cared to know about her. 

His mother cried when she discovered that he knew who Elizabeth Holland was. Jade felt it was too early for him to find out the truth about her at six years old, but they knew it would happen eventually. Jacob was too inquisitive and technologically savvy. It made for a dangerous combination with most things. It didn't help that he was so damn smart too.

Jacob made it a point to learn as much as possible. He loved school and loved gaining knowledge any chance he got. Jaxon was the polar opposite when it came to all of that. Jacob was upbeat and chipper, while Jaxon was the epitome of chill and laid back. 

Jaxon always moved in a relaxed manner. He was never in a rush and felt that if something didn't get done it didn't need to. Jacob hated this about his brother especially if he was relying on him for something.

Jaxon's cool and calm exterior got him a lot of attention despite his unease with most people. He had light brown skin, a muscular frame and bright blue eyes that allowed him to be Mr. Popular with the ladies without even trying. He liked that attention and fanfare and Jacob knew from their father's past that he definitely inherited that from him.

The two weren't twins but somehow looked alike. Their mother told them their maternal grandmother always felt that if you were around someone enough that you'd start looking like them and since they were brothers it was only natural that it happened to them too. They didn't believe her until it was becoming harder to convince people that they weren't biologically related.

Both boys bonded with their competitive spirits and love of sports. Jaxon didn't surprise anyone when he tried out for the soccer team in 6th grade and made varsity. He'd been playing the sport ever since and got a full scholarship to the schools of their choice.

Jacob was a phenomenal baseball player and pitcher. He felt it bonded him and his father in a way no one else could understand except for maybe his Paw Paw. Like his brother, Jake received full scholarships to the same five schools they both applied to.

Their mother and Aunts Jenna and Quinn were not happy with the school they ended up choosing. Seattle was so far from Houston and they knew it unnerved them. Jenna regaled them with stories of the stint she did in Seattle years ago that proved the city was both unsafe and downright weird, but they didn't care.

There were reports of strange things happening mostly on the west and east coasts since their junior year that garnered their attention. People were disappearing, while others were being admitted into hospitals with strange bite marks. The number of rumors on wolves being seen in the strangest places was absurd.