If you're reading my other stories, the beginning of this chapter is still on the day of Maggie Call's baptism.
Chapter song: Strange Times by The Black Keys
Chapter 2 – Strange Times
Seth's POV
A few hours after I spoke with Hayley, I heard a pounding on my front door. I knew who it was. I'd been mentally preparing myself for his arrival ever since I imprinted. As I pulled my door open, Jared's fist connected with my face.
"You son of a bitch," he yelled. "I told you. I fucking told you to stay away from her. But no. You had to be a cocky shit and say you'd never imprint."
He lunged forward and punched me in the stomach. I did nothing to defend myself as I fell to my knees, landing hard on my front porch. While I was down, Jared hit me again, this time connecting with my eye socket and I saw stars.
"Now you get to move on with your life and your imprint," Jared raged. "And my daughter gets to suffer humiliation and a broken heart."
Out of everyone, Jared had been the most against my relationship with Hayley—and rightfully so. He'd even broken our code about not telling people about the pack in an effort to protect Hayley. He thought if he told her about the wolves and the ramifications of imprinting, it would scare her away. It'd only made her more determined to stay with me.
Somewhere in the distance, I heard vehicles coming to a squealing halt and a couple of car doors opened and slammed. Jared gave me an uppercut to my jaw and my head whipped back. I swayed before my back hit the ground. Damn, for a retired wolf, he packed a punch.
"Enough," Sam's voice said. Through my swollen eye, I could see him wrap his arms around Jared from behind. "He's had enough."
"Fuck you, Clearwater," Jared roared at me. "Don't ever speak to me again like we're friends. Don't ever come near Hayley again."
He was trembling in his fury, and I wondered briefly if he was going to phase for the first time in almost twenty years. If he did, maybe he'd kill me.
"Jared, dude, you gotta calm down," another voice said, this one belonging to Paul.
"He fucked my daughter, got engaged to her despite everyone telling him to leave her the hell alone, and then he imprinted on someone else. Don't tell me to fucking calm down, Paul."
He managed to get out of Sam's grip and push him away. He looked at me with pure hatred. "You selfish prick." And shaking his head in disgust, he walked away shouting behind him, "Remember what I said, Clearwater."
Sam came over to me and carefully examined my face. I heard him swear under his breath as he saw the damage.
"You okay, Seth?"
I looked up at the sky and said, "How did you do it?"
"What?" he asked.
"Get over breaking Leah's heart after you imprinted on Emily."
Sam paused before he whispered, "I never got over hurting your sister."
"Fantastic," I muttered, sitting up with a wince. I wiped away the blood I could feel running down my lip.
"You need any help?" Paul asked.
"No, I'm okay," I said and slowly stood up. I glanced around and asked inanely, "Where's Nate?"
Nate Uley took his role as Alpha seriously. If one of his wolves was getting the shit kicked out of him by another wolf, generally he was right there to stop the mayhem…not that we ever fought.
"Will Samson showed up at the baptism today," Sam explained. Will was one of seven wolves who'd phased right before the Volturi visit years ago. He had retired from the pack awhile ago and moved to Los Angeles where he became a successful talent agent. Sam continued, "He's a single father now, and he decided he wanted to raise his son in La Push. He walked into the church, saw Maggie Call, and imprinted. He hasn't phased in years so he and Nate were making plans for him to spend some time with the Cullens in Vancouver. They're hoping exposure to the leeches will help him start phasing again. I saw Jared leave the party, and Paul and I decided to follow since Jared was in my pack, not Nate's."
I nodded though I felt sickened to hear about another fucked up imprint. I grimaced from the pain the movement caused. "I'm going to take a shower."
"If you need to talk," Sam offered. "I'm here."
"Thanks Sam," I replied, not meeting his eyes. I went back in my house, made it about three steps, and collapsed on the floor. When I woke up a few hours later, the room was dark. I got up from the ground carefully. My entire body felt like it had been beaten with a bat.
And there was a persistent nagging at the base of my spine. I knew what it was. Sighing, I went outside and headed for the woods. As soon as I was covered by the forest, I gave into the imprint and phased, following my connection to Kayla Marie. I arrived at a motel in Forks a few minutes later. I heard Kayla speaking to someone in one of the rooms.
"I'll be right back," she said.
"You be careful out there, Kayla," a woman said. "It's cold out tonight and you know how cold air affects your asthma."
"I know, Mom," Kayla Marie answered in an exasperated tone. My stomach twisted. She had asthma? How bad was it? Obviously bad enough if her mother was concerned about her adult daughter. My protective instincts went into overdrive. I was half tempted to run over to her room and lock her indoors, but I didn't want to freak her out.
She came outside and I stilled as I studied the woman who was my future. A part of me resented the imprint. I had already had my life mapped out, and I'd been perfectly happy with my choice…but I couldn't deny that this girl intrigued me.
She walked to the outdoor soda machine with an unconscious sway to her hips. I watched her head tip to the side, her long mahogany hair tumbling down her one shoulder as she observed the selection. After making her choice, she inserted the required money, hit a button, and grabbed her beverage. She turned so she was facing me as she popped the drink open and took a sip. As she started to pull the bottle away, she paused and looked in my direction, a frown on her beautiful face.
I shrank back into the forest though I knew she couldn't see me. Not taking her eyes off the area I was hiding, she made her way slowly back to her motel room and slipped inside. I stayed where I was for the next couple of hours until I knew Kayla had gone to bed and then I made my way back home.
As I lay in bed that night, I came to the realization that what Hayley said was true. I was going to need to move to Seattle if that's where Kayla was living. I couldn't be separated from her now that I had met her. And as much as I mourned my relationship with Hayley, there was a traitorous part inside me that wanted to see Kayla Marie again. I wanted to hear her speak and to feel her incredible eyes on me. To do that, I was going to need to relocate.
The next morning, I got ready for work and made my way to the garage. Though I was a wolf, my face was still pretty banged up. Quil was already in the office we shared when I arrived. He was sipping his coffee but spit it out when he saw me.
"Jesus," he muttered. "What the hell happened to you? Did you run into a door or something?"
"More like Jared's fist," I replied as I sat down at my computer and fired it up.
"What? Why?"
"You didn't hear? I imprinted yesterday, broke up with Hayley, and Jared rightfully beat the shit out of me with a big fat 'I told you so' on top of it."
"Wow," Quil replied, sitting back in his desk chair. He eyed me carefully. "You don't look too happy to have imprinted."
"I imprinted on a stranger and broke the heart of the girl I love. You're right, I should be jumping for joy," I said sarcastically.
Quil was silent for a moment before he questioned, "Who'd you imprint on?"
"Embry's sister, Kayla Marie."
Quil let out a low whistle. "No kidding. If it's any consolation, she's a great girl." My ears perked up as I absorbed this new information about my imprint. Quil added, "She's really happy and positive. You know, kind of like you used to be."
I rolled my eyes at that. "I grew up. Speaking of Embry, did you hear that he's my dad's bastard child?"
"Whoa…damn, I missed a lot yesterday. I saw Embry at Maggie's baptism, but Claire and I headed for home right after. He didn't say anything to me."
"No, he kept that information to himself for over a year," I said bitterly. "Why would he start telling people now?"
"So…you imprinted on your brother's half sister?"
"Yeah, Leah pointed that out to me, too, thanks," I replied, pinching the bridge of my nose with my fingers. I was getting the mother of all headaches.
"What are you going to do, Seth?" Quil asked quietly.
I sighed as I rested my head on the back of my chair so I could stare at the ceiling. "I don't know."
"Kayla Marie's a college student. She lives in Seattle."
I looked at him sadly and he swore softly.
"When are you going to leave?" he finally questioned.
"As soon as I can make arrangements. I'll need to let Nate know that I'm retiring from the pack effective immediately."
"How are you going to win her over?"
"Don't know. I haven't given it that much thought yet."
Quil chuckled. "That sounds like you. Remember when you left Sam's pack to join Jacob's. You gotta learn impulse control."
"Yeah well, that all worked out for the best. This will too." I said the last part with more confidence than I felt. I frowned as I looked at Quil. "About the garage…I can either be a silent partner or you can take on a new partner. Maybe Azra or Brady since they're going to be family someday." I added this slyly and Quil's eyes turned flinty.
Azra had phased around the same time Will had. He'd imprinted on Quil's infant daughter Natalie a few months before. Brady had imprinted on Quil's other daughter Kayley soon after she was born. Both guys worked for us along with another wolf, Ryan. Quil's girls were under three, and though Quil knew all about imprinting on a child, the idea of his own little girls having soul mates made him go into overbearing papa mode.
"I guess I could see if they'd want to be partners, maybe each splitting your half," Quil finally said. "If that's what you want to do, I mean. It's up to you."
I smiled at him to let him know it was okay. "That's fine. We'll go ahead and talk to them."
After meeting with Brady and Azra where we informed them of my upcoming departure, both guys agreed to buy my shares. Neither of them made a big deal of my imprint which I was grateful for.
I knew I had to tell Nate Uley my plans next, but I held off for a few days. I was still reeling from everything that had happened. And the idea of retiring from the pack wasn't a decision I wanted to rush into. It had been a part of my life for so long.
And as it turned out, it was probably a good thing I waited to tell him. A vampire we'd hunted earlier in the summer reappeared on the scene a few days after I imprinted. He first showed up in Oregon and his presence caused my niece Lilly to phase. She took off up north and ran into Jacob Black's son, Gabe. They took one look at each other and imprinted. Leah wasn't happy about it. Lilly was only twelve, but Gabe was a good guy.
In the chaos of everything that happened, Nate also found out his wife was pregnant. Nate was married to Meena Black-Uley. Meena was Jacob and Renesmee's daughter and Gabe's twin. Nate had imprinted on her shortly after he had become a wolf, and they married once they had graduated high school.
I knew Nate was under a lot of pressure at the moment. He was juggling wolf pack drama, his first year of college, and he was still a newlywed. Now, I was about to add to his list of burdens.
A week after I imprinted, I made my way to Port Angeles where Nate and Meena lived. When I reached their property, I knocked on their front door. Meena answered a few minutes later, her hair pinned up, flour on her cheek.
"Seth, hi. Come on in." She opened the door and I walked by her. "Sorry, I'm such a mess. I'm craving apple pie like you wouldn't believe."
"It's probably the baby," I said with a polite smile. "Your mom got major cravings when she was pregnant with you and Gabe. I don't want to interrupt your baking though. I just stopped by to see Nate."
"He had class this morning, but he should be home anytime. Do you want to wait for him?"
"Sure, thanks," I replied, taking a seat at the kitchen table.
Meena hummed happily as she cut up some apples. I knew she'd been worried that she couldn't get pregnant. She had inherited a lot of vampire traits from her Grandpa Edward including immortality. Carlisle figured if she hadn't gotten pregnant when she did, it probably wouldn't have happened for her. As it was, she was already showing signs of becoming immortal. When that happened, her body would become frozen. She was most likely in for a nasty labor.
"So…" she said as she put the pie in the oven. "I heard you imprinted."
"Yeah," I replied, staring at my folded hands where they rested on the table.
She reached over and squeezed one of my hands before letting go. "I know things seem bleak and hopeless right now, but things will get better. I promise. There's nothing better and more fulfilling in life than being with your imprint."
"I was happy with Hayley," I grumbled.
"You'll be happier with Kayla Marie. Just give it a chance…give her a chance."
"That's what I'm here to see Nate about."
"I figured as much," Meena replied.
Just then, Nate entered the house. He paused as he saw me. "Hi Seth. What's up?"
"I was wondering if we could talk."
"I'll leave you two alone," Meena said, getting up from the table. She went over to Nate and briefly kissed him on the lips before she headed upstairs.
Nate put the backpack he was carrying on the floor and came over to the table. He sat down next to me with wary acceptance on his face.
"You already know what I'm going to say, don't you?" I said.
"I figured you'd retire from the pack someday. And it's for a good reason."
"Nate, if you ever need me, just give me a call."
"Thanks Seth, I appreciate that. But right now, all I want is for you to focus on you. You've been a good friend to Meena's family as well as a loyal member of my pack. It's time for you to get your own happy ending."
"I thought I had it," I muttered.
"You'll know differently once you connect with your imprint. There's nothing like it."
"So I've been told."
Nate smiled at that. "Are you still planning on staying in the area?"
"No, I'm going to move to Seattle. I need to locate Kayla Marie and somehow find a way into her life. And it'll be easier for Jared and Hayley if I'm not around."
"Well…I guess a good place to start with finding out information about your imprint would be with Embry."
I sighed. I knew I'd have to approach Embry sometime, but I couldn't even think about the fact that he was my brother. I had put my father on a pedestal. It killed me to know that he was human after all. And to cheat on my mom! I had thought they'd been so happy together. Now their marriage seemed like a lie.
But Nate had a point. I needed information about Kayla Marie and Embry would be the best person to give it to me.
"I guess I'll talk to him next," I said, standing up.
Nate stood up as well. "If you need anything, you let me know."
"I will."
We looked at each other before briefly hugging. Nate patted me on the back before he stepped away from me.
"It's been an honor having you in my pack. I'm proud to call you my brother."
"You too," I said, feeling choked up. I had been in a pack since I was a teenager. It was truly the end of an era in my life.
I left Nate's house with the promise to keep him updated on when I was leaving. And then I headed for the hospital in Forks. Embry was a doctor and I knew he would probably be on duty right now. I walked into the Emergency Unit and went up to the nurse.
She looked up from her computer and said with a bored expression, "Can I help you?"
"Is Dr. Call on duty?"
"Yes, he is. Are you a patient or do you have an emergency?"
"Uh…no."
"Then I'm sorry, he's very busy today and can't be seen unless you're sick."
With a hesitant breath, I said, "Let him know his brother Seth is here."
The woman's eyes widened as she looked me over more closely. With a slight nod, she picked up the phone and dialed a number. "Dr. Call, there's a man here to see you. He says he's your brother Seth." She listened for a minute and then hung up. "He'll be right out if you want to take a seat."
I thanked her and headed for one of the waiting room chairs. I sat across from a woman sitting in a wheelchair holding a pink bowl. I really hoped she wasn't about to get sick. I didn't do well with vomit.
"Seth," Embry called out. I looked over my shoulder and saw him standing in a doorway wearing a white coat and stethoscope. He waved me over and I got up from my chair, following him down a corridor and into an office.
"Sorry," I said, "I know you're busy."
"That's okay," Embry replied, pointing for me to sit down in one of the office's chairs. One we were situated, he said, "I was a little surprised when the nurse said my brother was here."
I could feel my cheeks becoming heated. "I didn't think she'd let me see you any other way."
Embry observed me for a second before his face became disappointed. "I guess that means you aren't here for some quality bonding time."
I stared down at the floor with a frown. "Look, no offense, but I'm still trying to get used to the idea of us being related. I thought my father was a good man."
"He was a good man," Embry replied. "Your father loved your family very much."
Your father…not 'ours.'
"He was your dad, too." I pointed out, my stomach twisting with the knowledge.
Embry shook his head. "In my case, he was nothing more than a sperm donor."
"Why didn't he let us know?" I muttered.
"Because my mom wouldn't let him. She blackmailed him into keeping quiet—said she'd rat him out to Sue and then take me away from the rez. Your dad cared for me, but you, Leah, and Sue were his whole life."
I eyed Embry carefully. "You seem to be taking this well."
He shrugged. "I've had a year to get used to it. With all that said, why do I get the feeling you're here for another reason?"
I shifted uncomfortably in my seat. "I—uh—was sort of hoping you could give me some information about Kayla Marie."
Embry gave me a speculative look. "The truth is, I've only really gotten to know my sister since I married Rebecca last year. Becks is all about establishing family bonds after living away from her family in Hawaii for so long. What I can tell you about Kayla is she's in college and grades are important to her. She started off at the University of Washington, but she switched her major after a semester. She's now going to the Seattle Central Community College."
"What's her major?" I asked.
"She's had horrible asthma all her life. She wanted to help people with the same issue so she's getting an associate's degree in respiratory care. There aren't a lot of schools except for that college to offer her that chosen field." Embry looked thoughtful for a minute before he added, "On a personal level, she's a ball of positive energy. There's very little that gets her down, but she's also a sarcastic little shit."
"That must run in the family," I said, giving Embry a pointed stare and he chuckled. Embry was quiet by nature, but he could outmatch Leah in the sarcasm department.
"So what are you going to do?" Embry asked.
"Move to Seattle," I replied.
"Yeah…that's certainly understandable," he remarked, his face looking older as he said, "The time when Rebecca and I couldn't be together…that was the worst time of my life. You might not understand why you imprinted, but you will."
"Right," I said dryly. Everyone kept saying the same thing. That I would just love being imprinted someday. Well, right now, it felt like absolute shit, thank you very much. I got out of my chair and started heading for the door. "Thanks Embry for the information."
"I can see why you imprinted on her, you know." He spoke up as my hand reached the doorknob. I turned to look at him and he said, "You're a good match."
I gave a grim nod and left. Heading back into the woods, I phased and ran, heading toward Oregon. About an hour later, I showed up at Leah's house.
"Hey," she said in surprise as soon as she saw me. Her youngest son, Julian, came flying into the room, hurtling himself against my leg. I picked him up and snuggled him close before letting him go. Leah's husband Dylan came into the room and patted my shoulder.
"What brings you to Portland?" he asked.
"I have a question for you both."
"Hi Uncle Seth." Henry, Leah and Dylan's middle child, came over to greet me. I gave him a brief hug and mussed his hair affectionately.
"Henry, why don't you and Lian play in your room for awhile," Leah suggested and the boys went down the hall.
"Lilly's not around?" I questioned.
"She's in her room," Leah answered as we sat down in the living room.
"How's she doing?" I asked.
"She's still trying to adjust to being a wolf, but it's only been a few days," Leah said. "Gabe came over for dinner last night, and though she ignored him, his presence seemed to soothe her."
"The joys of imprinting," I grumbled.
I felt Dylan's eyes on me. "What's up, Seth?"
I rubbed the back of my neck. "I spoke to Embry earlier. Kayla Marie is a college student enrolled in a specific program. She's going to be living in Seattle until she graduates so I've decided to move there to be closer to her."
"You talked to Embry?" Leah asked, not meeting my eyes.
"Yeah," I said. "I take it you haven't spoken to him yet?"
"Not yet," Leah muttered and Dylan wrapped his arm around her waist, pulling her to his side.
An awkward silence fell between us and Dylan finally said, "What did you want to ask us?"
"I need a place to stay and I was wondering if I could use your condo until I can get a place of my own."
Leah and Dylan had lived in Seattle for years before Leah moved to Portland to open up her second spa. I knew they had kept their place in Seattle after they moved because Leah still went back there on occasion for business purposes.
"What about the house in La Push?" Leah asked. "Mom's living at Charlie's and if you're not there, who's going to look after it?"
I paused. "I guess we could sell it and turn the upstairs storage room at the store into an apartment for when we come back to visit."
"Sell the house?" Leah paled. "That's our family home. We grew up there."
I ran my hand through my hair in frustration. "Leah, what am I supposed to do? I have to be near my imprint. I already feel on edge and unsettled because I haven't seen her in over a week. I need to be near her. If no one is living there, it's not a home anyway. It's just a vacant house. And I'd rather have a family in it, taking care of the place and loving it, then leaving it abandoned."
Leah turned her head, but I saw her wipe at her cheeks before she muttered, "Fine. We'll talk to Mom and as long as she's willing, we'll put the house up for sale."
"Thank you. So can I stay at your place?"
"Yeah, that's fine," Dylan answered. "Stay as long as you need to."
"What about the pack?" Leah asked. "Did you retire?"
I nodded, still feeling panged over that decision. Even though Leah hated being a wolf, she seemed to understand what I was going through. She came over and gave me a hug.
"If your imprint gives you any trouble, let me know and I'll come kick her ass. I want you to be happy, Seth."
I felt choked up as I hugged my sister back.
A month after I imprinted, I moved into Leah's condo with the help of my pack brothers. It was a relief to leave La Push. It seemed like every time I turned around, Hayley was there either pleading with me, crying, or yelling at me. And if I ever saw Jared or Kim, they either ignored me or shot me dirty looks.
My first order of business after arriving in Seattle was to connect with my imprint. I figured the best way to do that was to enroll in the same college as her. I was able to bribe a student who worked in the admissions office and I attained Kayla's school schedule. I then signed myself up for a couple of her general elective classes.
When the beginning of the winter semester finally started, I was ready to crawl out of my skin. I had avoided stalking Kayla Marie by that point, but I was more than ready to see my imprint.
I just hoped everything would go as happily as everyone told me it would.
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