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Chapter Ten: Loving the Shattered Pieces
Embry POV
"Who the hell would pay to watch some twisted shit like that?" I demanded furiously glaring at Essie, all the while trying to keep myself from phasing at the fucking table.
"You'd be surprised." She shrugged indifferently. "There are some pretty unsavory characters that hide behind their wealth and status, some of them have some pretty twisted fantasies." That's a fucking understatement! "I just needed the money so bad."She shut her eyes for a moment, and once again I grabbed Essie's hand, letting her I know I was here; I wasn't going anywhere and as if she understood what I was trying to express she squeezed my hand back in understanding.
"Hey." I spoke softly as Essie opened her eyes and stared at me with such uncertainty. "Same world, remember?" I reminded, kissing her forehead. Essie nodded, and gave me a sad smile as she took a deep breath and continued.
"The money-it really paid well. Diane got Abby and me insurance finally, but it was I who had to pay the bill. I didn't just do it because I was pressed for cash or because I was good at it." She looked down our interlocked hands, and touched her wrist tattoo. "I liked fighting." She confessed. "Because every single time I took a swing at one of those girls, I only saw Diane's face. Every night, it was Diane's ass I was beating. I showed no mercy, and it felt good." Her voice sounded slightly euphoric, and I honestly I couldn't blame her tone. Diane was a real piece of work. "I would have kept fighting, had it not been for Abby following me one night to one of my fights. No matter how great it felt fighting, it didn't take away from how terrible it felt seeing Abby's face that night. She blamed herself for me getting involved with the illegal shit." She added remorsefully. "I hated myself for making her feel that way, so I quit. I got my GED instead and started working at a nearby distribution center. The money was nowhere near as good as the money I made fighting, but it paid the bills and our health insurance."
"What about Salem?" I had to know if this asshole was going to be a nuisance. "He just let you walk away without any repercussions?"
"Yeah," she laughed with an elated expression on her face, "by then, Salem had four other female teenage fighters of his own besides myself. There had to be at least forty in total who fought the circuit. Besides, it was starting to get difficult to place me in fights after people started referring to me as Cone Snail Moonflower." Small. Beautiful. Deadly. "I swore I would never fight again; I always tried to walk away. Although, Opal had me ready to throw that shit out the window today. The only fights I've ever lost were to Abby, but I blame that on the IED because it gives her superhuman strength."
"That explains why none of us girls were able to pull Abby off of Opal," Claire said out loud shaking her head.
"Yeah," Rachel agreed, "your sister tossed us around like a bunch of rag dolls." She cringed.
"I'm really sorry," she apologized to us. "I should have told Embry or one of the other guys to grab a hold of her before driving back to Tiffany's, but all I could think about was getting Abby sedated, and quickly."
I knew there was more. Ester hadn't touched on the topics of her father and brother, but pretty much revealed why she was so protective of her sister. She uncovered so many dark secrets under an hour. I suddenly felt a twinge of guilt. Here was the woman I was meant to love and protect; pouring out her soul to all of us, and I still hadn't gone into depth about my own personal daddy issues or shared with her the biggest secret of my entire existence. I realized now that I had to tell her. I couldn't wait for Josh to tell me whether his private eye had any success finding her brother, Ricky.
Ester suggested for everyone to go back to the beach, and try to have a good time. Although they were all reluctant, I whole-heartedly agreed. Seth and I stayed behind, of course, along with Jake, Bella, and Leah.
Leah, Essie, and Bella chatted quietly amongst themselves in the living room, while Jake and I sat at the table playing a game of cards.
"Tiff's home and she's not alone," Seth announced, staring out my mom's window. I slowly rose from the table and walked over just as mom was getting out of the car. Sue stepped out of the passenger seat while Josiah Cameron, Jared's dad, stepped out the back and walked over to my mom's trunk to pull out Billy's wheelchair. As soon as Josiah finished getting Billy settled in, Old Quil slid out. They all looked visibly upset and aggravated.
"This shit can't be good," Jake grumbled, rising from the table to open the front door. "Hey, dad!" he exclaimed with mock excitement.
"Don't you 'hey, dad' me," he scowled as Josiah wheeled him inside. "We were in the midst of a very important impromptu council meeting this morning with Embry's father via satellite when Opal Shadow and her parents came storming in. Opal claims that Ester Moonflower's sister tried to kill her on the beach today!"
"Dad, that's not even how it went down!" Jake began to explain as Essie joined my side.
"We don't take what she says at face value. We know she tends to exaggerate things." Sue cut in trying to calm down Essie who was about to come unhinged.
"But something did happen today," Josiah acknowledged. "And we are obligated to investigate all occurrences."
"We heard her dramatization," Old Quil rasped, taking a seat. "Now, do you mind sharing your version of the events?"
For the next twenty minutes, we all sat around and explained what took place at the beach from the moment Opal approached us, to when I finally yanked Abby away so Ester could sedate her. After I was done speaking, Ester reluctantly told The Elders about Abigail's condition. After ten minutes of silence, Josiah finally spoke.
"I have never in all my life met a young lady, like Opal Shadow so set on stirring up so much controversy." He shook his head.
"So what happens now?" I asked. "How much trouble is Abby in?"
"They will both have to exchange apologies." Billy exhaled. "Opal; for provoking Abby, and Abby; for breaking Opal's nose." Leah laughed, but tried to camouflage it with a cough. No one bought it.
"Opal's mother is demanding that someone pay her daughter's hospital expenses. She may need reconstructive surgery." Josiah exhaled on a somber note. "Or she'll press charges on Abigail."
"I can't afford that shit!" Essie gasped. "I mean, stuff." She tried to correct herself.
"It's alright, Essie. Embry's dad already agreed to take care of it," my mom cut in.
"Seriously?" Essie and I both replied at the same time. My mother nodded.
"And I would like you to bring Abby by to see me once a week," Josiah told Essie. "I'm the rez psychiatrist."
Jared's dad once ran his own private practice in Port Angeles but just like Joshua he felt compelled to give back to our community. He moved his practice to the reservation, but since he was really good at what he did, more than half his patients continued seeing him.
He pulled out one of his business cards and handed it over to Essie. "Perhaps we can look into alternate forms of treatment that are not so invasive."
"Thank you, Dr. Cameron." Ester mustered up a smile, it made me feel a little better knowing someone else besides my mom, Josh, and myself wanted to help Ester and her sister.
"You're welcome." He rose from the table.
"I'll take everyone home," Jake announced.
"Are you sure?" my mom asked him.
"Yeah, it's no problem." he assured her.
"I'm sorry our first meeting had to be like this," Billy told Essie. "Seeing you is like stepping into a time machine," he added nostalgically. "One thing Opal was right about was that you definitely look like the women of the Moonflower clan. I have so many albums I can share with you of your dad in his prime, along with-" Essie stunned Billy silent as she rushed past me and embraced him.
"Thank you," she murmured, kissing him on the cheek.
"Well, ahem." It took Billy some time to reign in his emotions as Essie pulled away. "I can bring them by for Sunday dinner."
"Sunday dinner?" Essie raised one brow at me.
"Yeah," I rubbed the back of my neck nervously, "It's sort of a tradition; something we've been doing for the past few years. The elders, along with the majority of everyone you met at the beach, along with Bell's dad. It's at Josh's, since his place is the biggest."
"And he'll be back tomorrow," my mom added, trying to hide her excitement. Who the hell was she fooling? I cut my eyes and looked down at the floor.
"If you don't mind I would like to check on Abigail before we go," Jake's dad added. I watched Essie's expression change for delight to horror. Instantly I knew what she was thinking. Opal told the Council about Essie looking like the Moonflowers, which only meant she must have told them about Abby's rather pale complexion.
"She's still resting," Essie responded hesitantly.
"I'll only be a minute," Billy replied rolling himself down the hall. As soon as he disappeared Essie looked at me totally sickened.
"Hey." I cupped her face. "It's going to be alright." Essie shook her head, as she gazed worriedly into my eyes, within seconds I had her in my arms, rubbing her back comfortingly, as if to silently assure her that everything will be okay. A few moments later, Billy returned with a slightly taken aback look on his face. Essie slowly pulled away from me and walked towards Billy.
"Billy, I can explain," Essie begin to speak, but Billy raised one hand and shook his head.
"Did Tim claim that young girl as his own?" He stared at Essie carefully.
"He did. Abigail has my father's last name, and he loved her as much as he loved me." Essie answered confidently.
"Than Abigail is as much a Moonflower as you are. No one will hear otherwise," Billy responded extending his hand out to Essie, she took it without hesitation.
"Thank you," Essie replied graciously as happy tears rolled down her face.
Leah relieved Brady soon after Jake and Bells left to take the council members home. Sue stayed behind to make sure Abby was alright. The four of us sat quietly in the guest room, waiting for Abby to wake up. Seth was sitting on the floor, leaning against the door and staring at Abby while she slept. He appeared to be deep in thought.
Essie and I were sitting on the other bed, flipping through the channels on the television. Cable television was a trip; over five hundred channels without a damn thing to watch. I huffed with frustration.
"To think," Essie groaned loudly, "I thought I was actually missing out not having cable growing up." Her head was in my lap and she'd let me stroke her hair. It was so soft and I liked to feel her shudder when I brushed the shell of her ear.
"It's totally overrated," I grumbled.
"Just a bunch of ridiculous reality shows, and mediocre comedies." Seth added, finally joining the land of the living. Poor kid still didn't take his eyes off Abby, though, as she finally stirred.
"Seth," Abby slurred groggily, prompting my pack brother to shoot up like a rocket and make his way over to her.
"I'm right here," he whispered, stroking her face. Ester sat up quickly as well making her way to the edge of the bed.
"Essie?" Abby eyes fluttered open. Seth moved out the way so Essie could get closer to her sister.
"Hey, how are you feeling?" Instead of replying to Essie's question, terrible sobs escaped Abby's mouth.
"I'm…so…sorry!" Abby wailed, gripping her sister tightly. "I…tried."
"Shhh!" Essie climbed on the bed and rocked her sister. "I know you did, sweetie."
"How much damage did I do to her?" she asked her sister.
"Broken nose," Essie murmured as she caressed Abby's hair trying to sooth her sister.
"Damn it!" Abby cursed. She pulled away from Essie. "Are the other girls okay? I wasn't thinking straight."
"They're fine," Essie assured her sister. "Listen, Abby, the council members came. You have to apologize to Opal, and the rez psychiatrist wants to see you once a week."
"You told them?" Abby screeched, stumbling out of bed.
"That's just great," she continued yelling. "Now everyone is going to think I'm some crazy bitch!" Seth shook his head and made his way towards Abby with the most determined expression on his face.
"You're not crazy," Seth objected, moving even closer to Abby.
"I am crazy if you knew of the things I've done to myself." Abby shook her head, backing away from Seth, but he pulled her back towards him.
"I do know," he told her, raising her sleeve and slowly exposing her scars.
"Seth, no…" Abby pleaded, but stopped in mid-sentence as my pack brother leaned in and kissed one of her scars. Abby gasped in shock. It was such an intense moment between them that even I had to control my emotions to prevent letting anything out, however Essie wasn't so lucky. I guess it was too much, as she covered her mouth to keep any sound from coming out. Her tears flowed freely as I stroked her back comfortingly.
"Don't you understand, Abby? You can't get rid of me. Not now, not ever," he promised her, and suddenly I felt as if I was intruding on a very sacred moment between Seth and his mate. "I will never walk away from you no matter what."
"How could you be so sure, Seth?" Abby's lips trembled. Seth glanced at me for a moment and then at Essie who stood beside me, so shockingly quiet.
"Do you mind if Abby and I speak privately, Es?" he asked.
"I don't know…" she hesitated.
"Actually," I cut in and faced Essie, looking her directly in her eyes, "there's something I need to talk to you about in private as well." Essie's eyes shifted from me to Abby and then to Seth. I could see her internal struggle as she shifted her weight from one foot to the other. "They won't really be alone; my mom and Sue are here."
"This can't wait, can it?" Essie replied softly, still staring at Seth and his sister.
"I thought it could, but after what you told us today, it's only fair to let you in on some secrets of my own."
Ester POV
Before I got in Embry's truck, he told me we were going to his father's place. An awkward silence commenced as Embry drove with both hands gripping the stirring wheel. He appeared so tense and nervous. His body language told me that whatever it was he had to tell me, it was huge. And, by the looks of it, I was leaning more towards this secret being bad than good.
My thoughts raced at all the possible secrets Embry could have: Did he have a girlfriend? Was he just playing with my emotions and suddenly felt bad when he realized how messed up my life had already been, so he wanted to come clean? No, that couldn't be it. I shook my head. If he did have someone else, Leah would have told me, right? Then again, her loyalty would probably lie more with Embry, since she and I had just met.
Embry released one of his hands from his steering wheel and took one of mine. His strange warmth always made me feel calm, but it also brought back memories of when my father was dying. His last few months, he'd get these terrible fevers and we'd end rushing him to the ER because Diane couldn't bring it down to an un-alarming temperature.
Oh. My. God. What if Embry was sick, but not in a common cold sort of way like my dad? The thought of losing him, too, made me feel sick to my stomach, and as soon as we pulled up to his father's house, I swung the door open and emptied my stomach.
"Shit, Essie!" Embry quickly got out of his truck and ran over to me. "Are you alright?" he asked, rubbing my back, his voice full of worry.
"Are you dying, Embry?" I sobbed as I wiped my mouth and rested my head between my legs so I could try to calm my dizziness. My world felt as though it was spinning out of control. "That's it, isn't it?" I exhaled rapidly. "You've got some terminal illness…" I trailed off.
"What!" Embry exclaimed, confused as hell. "Of course not, Essie. I'm probably the healthiest person you've ever met. I just run hot." I didn't believe him. He had to be lying; shit just didn't make sense.
"Then why do you always have a fever?" I demanded, finally standing up straight.
"It's not because of that, I promise. I'm not sick. That's actually a part of what I wanted to talk to you about," he told me. His eyes were so honest and because of that, I decided to believe him. "Don't tell me you hadn't noticed the rest of the guys having the same issue?" He raised one brow at me.
Shit, he was right! How could I forget? Seth was abnormally warm when we first met, and holding Jake's hand from across the table was warmer than usual as well. "This is about all of us. What I have to tell you is the same thing that Seth is telling Abby right now," he explained, taking my hand into his. "Come on, let's get you inside and get cleaned up."
~XoXoXoXoXoXoXoX
"Holy shit!" I cursed, walking inside Joshua's place as I took in my surroundings. "This isn't a house, it's a fucking hotel! You live here?"
"No," he shook his head, "I have my own place near the rest of the guys. I only stay here when Josh is away on business. He leaves about five times a year to handle affairs he otherwise can't through phone conferences and shit." I nodded in understanding as he led me upstairs. We stopped at the first door to our left.
"Every single one of these rooms are the same-minus Josh's, but I still like this one the most," he said, taking a key out and unlocking the door. "Same goes for the rest of the guys when we all stay here. They always stay in the same room." He opened the door, but didn't walk in. "Ladies first." He gestured with his hand.
"Yup, definitely a hotel," I muttered looking around the finely decorated room, which was able to fit an actual loveseat and a king size bed, yet still be massive enough for a table, a nightstand and a dresser; all mahogany in color.
"Josh started working on this place a couple of years ago after he regained his spot on the Council of Elders," Embry explained as he walked over to his dresser and pulled out two pairs of T-Shirts and boxer shorts, I raised one brow with curiosity staring at his choice of wardrobe. There was no way I could fit his oversized clothes. "I bought Josh's old house from him."
"Why didn't your dad just give you the house? It doesn't look like he's pressed for cash." I gestured wildly at the extravagant room.
"He offered, but I wouldn't let him," he huffed defiantly. "I don't like it when Josh gives me shit; makes me feel like he's trying to buy my love. You don't buy someone's love; you earn it. Besides, he's already done enough for me in the past few days," he mumbled. "And he won't even let me pay him back." He slammed the dresser shut. I was starting to realize Embry and I had a lot more in common than I thought. He and I both disliked being handed things, but I believed it was for different reasons. He didn't like his dad giving him money because he felt he was being bought, I didn't like being given anything, because I didn't want to be in debt to anyone. It was all about control.
"I'm going to go take a shower in Josh's room; I need to get this sand off of me. You can take one in here. There're brand new toothbrushes below the sink. I'll knock before I come in."
Within seconds, Embry was gone.
Making my way into the bathroom, I decided to mentally prepare myself for the truth that Embry had to unfold.
A/N: Want a sneak peak of Chapter 11? Review Chapter 10 and you'll have a sneak peak in your inbox ASAP. For those of you who have been asking for a Seth/Abby companion piece to If You're Not the One, I feel totally flattered. Knowing you all love Abby as much as Essie makes me smile. With that being a said, I would be more than honored to do a Seth/Abby story for my Seth lovers. Once again thanks for reading and please do not forget to add IYNTO to your alerts and favorites.