AN: Thanks for the reviews everyone. I'm truly grateful for any opinions that you're willing to share. I've wanted to get this written all week, but it's been busy. Gotta love the real world sometimes. Hope that you enjoy this and as always, I appreciate any feedback that you decide to give.

Disclaimer: I own nothing.


"If you're going to find something, it will always be in the last place you look."

Embry's POV

My healing still didn't kick in and it was decided that I was to be removed from pack activities until I could actually phase again. That made me feel awful, even though I recognized that I couldn't really contribute anymore. Being in the pack had provided the sense of community that I needed, so the fact that Sam didn't think I should bother coming to the meetings anymore hurt. I'd always felt like an outsider, but after a taste of what it was like to be part of something, it was even worse.

To add to my guilt, Quil had been instructed to stay with me and try to get me well again. He refused to let me think of it as him being stuck with me, but I knew that I was holding him back from being able to grow closer with the pack while he was attempting to bring my wolf to the surface. Not to mention that I was keeping a fully capable wolf from contributing to patrols and other responsibilities, hurting the pack. In all reality my actions had weakened the pack by two. Still, he seemed extremely eager to try and get me phasing again. I was grateful to not be alone right now, but I was afraid.

What if I never recovered my wolf? Looking back, I fully understood his feelings of betrayal. I hadn't thought of anyone but myself when I tried to end my life. He had been an important part of me that I'd so willingly tried to cast away. I didn't blame him for leaving…if he was still alive.

The thought that I'd killed him lingered in my mind as well. In my dream, he'd simply disappeared. I know that they were called our spirits, so was it possible that it was his way of being gone forever? I prayed that it wasn't. The idea that I'd successfully destroyed such an important piece of our tribe – and of me – sent shivers down my spine.

There were a lot of things that were supporting the concept that I would never shift again. All of the signs that the shifters carried were fading from me. Obviously my healing hadn't kicked in, but there was more. My body temperature had been slowly decreasing, along with my appetite. I was still a few degrees above normal humans, but I could feel the margin decreasing with time. I got the distinct feeling that if I didn't act soon it'd be too late – if it wasn't already.

My fears drove me to begin trying to recover him as fast as possible. I just didn't know where to start. I could feel a distinct piece missing from me, but how do you find something that's vanished? It's not one of those "where did you have it last" type of things. My wolf could have just left or disappeared without a trace. This wasn't going to be easy, but I really wanted to find him and hopefully regain my connection.

Which is why we're currently in the middle of the forest, trying anything that comes to mind to bring him back. Quil has tried to stay positive, but I can sense that something's bothering him about this. I just can't quite place why he feels so upset about it. Whatever it is, he's still being supportive and I know I need to focus on the problem itself.

We've tried about everything. I sat in meditation for a long while, focusing my mind on the image of the animal that I had been able to become. Afterwards Quil had tried to make me angry, but refused to push that to the extremes it would take to even have chance. His lack of heart in insulting me really prevented his words from having their effect. Hell, Quil had even tried to use some form of hypnosis, which I would have laughed at if we weren't desperate enough to try.

On the third day we actually got permission from Sam to go see Doctor Cullen. He was about the only one you could say specialized in supernatural medicine and even though Quil didn't want to go near the vampires – let alone let me near them when I couldn't phase – we had to see if they could help. After an examination, Carlisle (as he insisted we call him) concluded that I was showing all of the signs of being a regular human, with the exception of my mild fever. I didn't even smell like a wet dog to him, although he phrased it a little more respectfully than that. He'd never heard of this happening and we were still at square one.

As more and more ideas failed, I watched as Quil began to get riled up. This is the fourth day we've been trying anything that came to mind, but absolutely nothing has gotten us any closer. He began by pacing as we pondered ideas, but I could feel the agitation rolling off of him. Suddenly he snapped, throwing his fist into a tree and shattering its bark. He repeated this a couple of times, knocking over a few of the smaller trees that were unfortunate enough to be in his path. I looked at him in shock as he began to shake violently, exploding into his wolf form.

It hit me that it was the first time I'd seen Quil as a wolf. He was a beautiful shade of brown, reminding me almost of chocolate. He looked smooth and I longed to run my hand through his fur. As I gawked at him, I suddenly became fully aware that he was stalking closer to me. The look in his eyes wasn't one of love, tenderness, or care. His hackles were raised, teeth bared, and his eyes were pitch black. Something had filled the wolf with what looked to be pure, unadulterated fury. I could easily figure out that the something was me and as the wolf towered over me, I realized that for the first time I was actually afraid of Quil…

Quil's POV

I was completely driven to bring Em's wolf back out. I don't know why, but I was obsessed with the idea. I had talked to Sam and he had pulled me aside after the first pack meeting I'd gone to in order to have a talk.

"So Quil, I think that you might be the only one who can help Em" he began.

"Really? It's not like I have any knowledge on how this stuff works." I replied, wondering what he meant.

"Well, to be honest with you, I think he imprinted on you. Thinking back to the day that a leech we were chasing ran by him and going by the pull you say you felt to find him when you phased, it's the only thing I can come up with. If anyone can help him find his wolf, it'll be you." He stated.

"You…you think he imprinted on me? Why didn't I return it?" I asked, not really understanding how any of this was possible. Imprinting was about passing on the wolf genes, right?

"I'm not sure why you didn't, but I still think you're the only hope. I don't want him trying to fight vampires or feel like he should still be a part of our duties right now. I know he'll want to, but he needs to get better, so I'm asking you to take the time off to help him as well. If it doesn't work out, we can go from there, but I think we should see if you can make progress with him." He'd finished. I accepted and had been with Em nonstop since.

As the days passed, my anger was beginning to rise. I couldn't explain it, but I felt furious at Em's inability to call forth his wolf. By the fourth day, I could no longer contain it and phased without warning. I stalked towards Embry, feeling like a predator in every sense of the word. Em looked at me with fear in his eyes, and as much as I hate to say it, he was right to be afraid. I wasn't in control of my wolf anymore.

For the first time, I felt my wolf as more than just a part of me. It was as if he had a separate conscience, and he was furious.

"He killed him!" the voice yelled.

"Calm down!" I cried out in my mind.

"No, he's killed our mate. I can't sense him in there! He doesn't deserve to walk this earth anymore! I will destroy him!" my wolf growled out.

I think that I finally understood imprinting. I had always known that it was an element that showed us who our soul mates are, but it wasn't just for the human in us. Our mates had to please the wolf as well. My wolf was supposed to be mated with Em's, just as we were soulmates as humans. Em not being able to phase had kept my wolf from seeing his rightful mate and kept me from imprinting. Embry was missing too important of a piece of him for my wolf to accept him as our mate, and this was his punishment for Embry's mistake.

As hard as I tried, I couldn't reason with my wolf. He actually felt justified in ending Embry's life. I watched in horror as my head began to lower down to Em. This couldn't be happening!

Suddenly I felt my body knocked through the air, crashing into some trees. As I stood up, I saw the large body of a black wolf walking towards me. I felt my wolf recede back from the threatening growl that he was giving. Pecking order couldn't be disobeyed and my wolf wasn't about to try and challenge the Alpha.

"That is NOT what I had in mind when I told you to watch over him!" Sam growled at me. I hung my head, not even trying to defend myself. I'd almost killed my best friend...the one who was supposed to be my mate. I deserved to be lectured, attacked, or whatever Sam wanted to do. Surprisingly he let me off relatively easily. I cringed as he replayed the horrific incident where he'd lost control of his wolf with Emily nearby. It hurt me to see (and it killed him to relive it so vividly), but I knew that he was getting his point across.

"Now that you're back in control, be more careful. I don't think all hope is lost, but you can't lash out like that again." He chided before running off. I was still afraid my wolf could resurface, but Sam seemed confident that he'd made his point as Alpha.

I phased back, remaining crouched on the ground and not daring to look at Embry. Even after everything that had just happened, he cautiously approached me. I was surprised that he even did that, but he rested his hand on my shoulder after a few minutes and I finally glanced up at him.

"I'm sorry Em…I completely lost control. There's no excuse…" I choked out, fighting the emotions that were brewing in me.

"What was that? It…it didn't look like you" he replied, sitting down beside me.

"It was my wolf. He…he was angry that he couldn't sense yours. Apparently that's who he was supposed to imprint on." I explained.

"So…your wolf is mad at me for chasing away his mate?" he said solemnly. I nodded, not having anything to try and cover it up with.

We stayed silent for a little while before finally getting up and leaving the forest. Sam had been gracious enough to leave me the pants he'd tied to his leg. Suddenly I heard something stirring nearby and my nose was filled with a scent that I'd never experienced. Plain and simple, the smell wreaked.

"Em, I think we're being followed. I'm gonna phase, but I need you to get on my back as soon as I do. All right?" I questioned, hoping he wouldn't freak out at seeing my wolf again. He simply nodded and I quickly focused, bringing forth my wolf again. I was in control, however, and as soon as I completed the change, I heard my brothers engaged in hunting down a small group of them.

"Get Em out of there Quil! There seems to be a coven that decided to stroll through, but they're not the good kind." Sam commanded.

I slumped down, allowing Em onto my back. As I took off, I saw them. 3 of them, all with gleaming red eyes. I pushed forward, running towards the mountains that weren't too far away. In the open, I might have a shot at protecting Em. I had a stocky build, so fighting a defensive match in the middle of the forest wasn't exactly my best idea.

Trees brushed by me and it took a lot of extra effort to keep Em from getting hit by everything I ran through. I tried to protect him, but I felt him tense every time he got hit by something hard. We finally broke through the clearing when one of the leeches grabbed my leg, causing me to slam into the ground. I watched as Embry flew over me, slamming into one of the rocks that dotted this open patch. I could only imagine that he had broken some things, especially without the help of his wolf to protect him. I watched as he lay there, out cold, and as I tried to make my way towards him, I felt cold hands landing on me. One leech grabbed each side of me and held me as the third approached, a glint in his eye. I struggled to break free of the two vice grips holding me in place, but it was no luck. They were strong creatures.

"I'm going to enjoy this." The one approaching me said, smirking. "A lot of my kind don't like your hot blood. I think it's quite the rush to feel its warmth running through my system" he said, positioning himself at my neck.

The pack was fighting on the other side of the reservation, Em was at the very least unconscious, and I was trapped in the crushing grip of two bloodsuckers. I wasn't exactly the best strategist, but I could recognize that this was not the situation that I wanted to be in. Suddenly I felt the very real possibility that this might be the end...


Wait, is that two cliffhangers in the span of three chapters? OK, I'll admit it, I kinda enjoy leaving the chapter at a point where anything could happen. It lets me think about what to do with the situation. It also hopefully keeps you interested in what's going to happen next. But there you have it, the latest chapter. I hope to get to work on the next one this weekend, but we'll see if I'm able to. As I said before, I hope you'll take the time to review!