It might be a short chapter, but I find it important to space out the information in a story. :) Hope you like it. I got written as quick as I could. I've been a little preoccupied though; I have been reading the Hunger Games and such. It's a new favorite haha. Thanks to the people who reviewed last chapter… they make me want to continue writing this here story.
Imprinted on a Broken Soul
Chapter 11:
(Paul's P.O.V.)
I paced the few feet of the waiting room back and forth, anxiously. I got Lela to the hospital in time... according to the doctor, but I was so unsure. The doctors took her out of my care, but it was so hard for me to let her go when she was in that condition. I wanted to follow her when they took her back, but they told me they couldn't allow me and that I had to wait in the waiting room. It was so frustrating! Knowing Lela was having a seizure and I couldn't stay with her to make sure she was okay, but I had to calm myself and tell myself the doctors were going to help her.
Although I knew this, I couldn't sit down and be still. I was slightly shaky, but I controlled it the best I could to stay intact rather than bursting into a gigantic wolf. However, it wasn't helping that Lela's leech was sitting across the room from me, with his head down. He looked so distressed, it disgusted me. His smell was irritating my nostrils, adding to the urge within me to want to morph into a werewolf and rip him to shreds. I heard a low growl began to build up in my chest at the thought.
Everything would have been fine today if it weren't for those filthy bloodsuckers. I would've picked up Lela; we would've driven to the beach, got out and hanged out with my pack, and maybe I would have got closer to her like I wanted, but no. I arrive at Lela's house to find her outside crouched by the side of the house.
Worried was how I first felt when seeing her, but I attention rose elsewhere, upon smelling blood thick in the air. I didn't understand it at first, but I knew it wasn't Lela's and that all I cared about. I told Lela we had to leave, I felt my hairs on my arms stand up on end and I knew a predator was in the area, but I couldn't smell him. Then I heard a branch purposely snapped nearby so I grabbed Lela, but she frantically pulled away from me. It made my focus snap back to her as I saw Lela shuffle on the floor away from me, I didn't understand what was wrong. Did she know the monster was nearby and didn't trust me?
I was confused but I had to get her out of the area so I had advanced on her. She was shaken by something and I didn't know what it was, so I did my best to sooth her to get her to trust me, but my senses were on high alert trying to hear anything I could in the surrounding area.
She wanted me to leave but I refused, wanting to protect her, I watched helplessly as she screamed from an unknown cause as if something was physically hurting her. Then, he came; I shot a glare at the bloodsuckers figure across the room. He was the only one there in the vicinity, the only smell I could detect. The other leech, if it was also there was undetectable… which enraged me. How come I couldn't smell it's today? I growled again in frustration, concern for Lela eating at me, as well as the dire need to be with her to protect her.
My current fit of rage was cut off by the ring of my cell phone going off in my pocket. I stopped pacing to take it out as I sat down to answer it. It was Sam.
"Paul, where are you?"
"At the hospital, there was an incident. Look, listen Sam, there was an encounter with the other leech today. Can you send some of our pack to Lela's house to find traces or leads to the bloodsucker?" I asked, rushing through the information.
"Alright, done. What happened?" Sam demanded over the phone.
"It's tricky. I will share with you later," I said really not in the mood to explain, especially in such a public space, even if the nurse at the receptionist window was away on a coffee break and the other, only person in here was a leech.
"Fine…" Sam said seeming calmer. "How's Lela? Was she hurt?"
"I don't know, doctors haven't let me see her yet. She wasn't really hurt physically," I said feeling rather concerned and clueless now. I don't really understand what condition Lela is in right now. She just started shaking and all of a sudden lost control of her body and she was no longer there when her eyes rolled up into the back of her head. That thought made me wonder, if… did Lela have some sort of medical condition? The long pause on the other end of the line must have informed Sam enough because he began talking again.
"The pack will be there at the hospital soon enough," Sam said rather convincingly, but continued his next statement as an order. "Keep it together Paul, don't do anything irrational." With that, being the last said between me and him, he hung up and I snapped my phone shut and shoved it back in my shorts.
Sam's slight order, ticked me off as I slummed back in the chair, my gaze landing upon the only thing left in the room. My lipped curled up over my teeth in distaste at the thought my Lela having been living with this leech for most of her life. Her very being was at risk everyday and it unsettled me. My frustration got too much as I viciously spitted out a question that's been on my mind for a while.
"How is it that you came into Lela's life?"
The leech so called Ethan… raised his head from his hands slowly as his eyes pierced through mine. He looked irritated, probably at my attitude, but underneath his irritation was worry. Ethan had looked at me for a long time until he gave up his stare and sighed. He rubbed his temples and looked as if, in his mind, he was elsewhere as his eyes trailed down the hallway they took Lela down.
"I didn't…" Ethan answered slowly in a calm manner, pausing briefly before finishing his statement. "She came into mine."
I was immediately confused and annoyed by his stupid statement. "What the hell do you mean?" I asked roughly as I crossed my arms, gritting my teeth.
Ethan looked at me briefly and smirked at my tone, like he knew his being alone gets on my nerves. His smirk didn't last long as a look of skepticism and ease took its place that was masked in a blank expression. "Normally I would never reveal this. It would be too personal for me alone to speak of for another, but under this circumstance, I see it as inevitable. Having known what you are and what your connection to Lela is now; it's all a matter of time before finding out our background. However, I will only tell my part… Lela… well she has never been the one to talk about the past. I wish you luck in cracking that barrier," Ethan said slightly smiling at the thought, almost mocking me. I rolled my eyes, which he caught, but he made no mention of it as he continued.
"Now Paul, you must understand why I am like her uncle. I have watched over Lela ever since she was born, just like I have with her other two siblings, but she was the one the required most care. I take frequent visits to check up on her other two siblings every three weeks or so, but they no longer need a watchful hand unlike Lela. Lela needed a legal guardian or she would've ended up in foster care for the remaining years of her teenage life, so I got the courts order as her legal guardian, because I was, under legal papers, a brother to her mother. Now those papers are a lie. I am not the brother to her mother, but her mother, Helen, made it so that I was. Helen considered me to be a part of her family," Ethan paused unhappily as he contemplated the past.
"Why would anyone count a thing like you as family?" I questioned, disgusted at the idea. Ethan didn't take offense to it as he carried on.
"Because Helen wanted me to be a part of her life, but I couldn't fill up all of her requirements," Ethan said quietly.
"What the hell does that mean?" I asked perplexed. What the hell did Helen want him to do?
"Helen wanted to be a mother… and I couldn't give that to her. Well, more like I didn't know I couldn't give her one, since I found it is possible. Seeing as little Renesmee is the perfect example that it is possible, but I didn't know that at that time," Ethan paused, thinking of a different outcome there would have been if he knew he could give Helen what she really wanted. I made a appalling sound at the thought of the Edward leech impregnating Bella when she was a mere human. The image of Bella's form when pregnant with the spawn child appeared in my mind (an imaged borrowed from Jacob's mind) it made me sick.
"So, although she loved me, Helen couldn't give it up. I respected her wishes as best I could, and left her life for a long time trying to stay out of it, to let her be able to move on. I was able to stay away for about two years, when I came back. I had to see how she was and I found her married to another man, Thomas was his name. From the smell of him, I knew he was not really any good, but Helen didn't listen to me. She told me to give him a chance. She brought me back into her life as a friend, but I could tell her husband thought differently after time had passed and she delivered her first set of babies. Helen got her kids to believe I was their uncle, that I was good and friendly. I saw the wheels practically turning in Thomas's head whenever Helen talked about me to the children or the look in her eye she had when I played with them. Thomas became more hostile in my presence and I heard Helen and him have an argument a of couple times when I left. I didn't want her marriage to go wrong because of me, so I started leaving her life and children for long periods of time. I only visited during holidays, where Helen basically had to beg me to come over to visit.
"I always told her it wasn't right for me to be in her life when she was with another, but she insisted Thomas didn't mind. That's when she had it legally done that I was her brother. It made things easier when neighbors or friends came by to her house and I was there. Helen would introduce me as her brother, making it okay for me to stay there a couple days until I went away again. Thomas, I knew, still didn't like it… and I couldn't blame him… I didn't like the things he use to do to her or the relationship they had. Thomas put up with me for the most part, but his tolerance of me finally broke with Helen's death.
"On her death bed… Helen made me promise, to swear… that I would look after her kids and stay part of the family… I was heartbroken at the time of seeing my love dying so young, so I didn't see why it was so important to do this for her when the kids had their father still, but I didn't question it. And I watched Helen slowly lose her life and I couldn't save her because she didn't want to be what I was. Helen had died when Lela was twelve. Lela… didn't handle it very well…" Ethan slowly stopped talking, becoming too caught in the moment of Helen's death that he almost revealed some of Lela's personal information to the topic.
"So what happened after that?" I asked in a mellow tone, interested in knowing more of Lela's life.
"I found out why Helen wanted me to watch over her kids… Thomas wasn't stable…" Ethan's stare became hard as he shot me a warning glare. "Which is why you have to be, in order to win Lela over. I know how reckless you werewolves are… I was informed by the Cullen's of what could happen if you lose your temper. If you ever hurt Lela during a fit a rage, I will personally rip out your arms from their sockets."
I glared at Ethan now and the pieces clicked in my head. Lela's father must have been abusive and Ethan must have been around Lela to try and protect her. I became angered at the thought of what Lela might have had to deal with in the past, the unnecessary pain she had to go through during childhood. "I won't ever hurt her," I growled out, my heart pumping fast.
"Swear it on your life," Ethan demanded his face grave.
"I swear on my life as well as my packs and everything I love," I said immediately.
"Good." Ethan said ending the conversation as my pack arrived.
Sam strode in with Jacob, Seth, and Brady behind him. The pack became stiff at the scent and sight of Ethan, but I quickly told them who he was. They seem to relax at this, but the young one, Brady, looked shaky. Seth put his hand on Brady as support as Sam step forward, towards me.
"The others have found some traces of the other parasite and are tracking it now," Sam informed, his gaze casually trailing over to Ethan.
Ethan's eyes were trained on them, his face emotionless but his demeanor was tense. "The… 'parasite' you speak of… Is this the same one who's the cause for the unexplainable deaths in the area?" Ethan asked calmly, professional.
"We believe so," Sam answered, distrust linked in his tone.
"How is it you haven't caught it yet?" Ethan asked, raising an eyebrow.
"It seems to carry a special ability of hiding itself," Sam stated, his teeth gritted at the sound of Ethan questioning their efficiency.
Ethan didn't break eye contact with the pack leader and maybe Ethan did question their capabilities, but before more assumptions could be made, Seth interrupted.
"How is Lela? Any news yet?"
"Don't know, they haven't told us anything," I answered, my tone rough in frustration and impatience.
However, right after I answered, the doctor came out and strolled into the waiting room. Ethan and I both jumped up at the mention of Lela. The doctor explained how they had treated her and how she was. He said she was wake and stable now and then asked who the immediate family was. Ethan stated he was and the doctor told Ethan, he can go ahead and see her. I asked to see her too, but the doctor wouldn't let me or any of my pack in since we were not technically related to Lela. Ethan was about to head into Lela's room, when he stopped to examine the commotion. Our eyes connected, and I'm sure he saw that I need to see her. Ethan told the doctor to let me and my pack through, which the doctor feebly protested, but gave up and let us go in.
Ethan held the door open for all of us guys, me being the last one to enter from my group. We nodded at each other in mutual agreement and then entered Lela's hospital room, where Lela lay wake gazing out the window.
Well hopefully this solves a little of the mystery of Lela's past. I wanted Ethan to explain it all, but I decided it be best for Lela opening up her past by herself to Paul. Plus I wanted to make it not in Ethan's character to reveal information of another being. Meaning, I'm trying to portray Ethan as trustworthy. So anywho, hoped you like it. Give me feedback on the chapter. Questions/comments/concerns is all welcome. I tried my best to keep the character of Paul intact as well as the Wolf Pack characters.
Please Review!
Disclaimer: Don't own Twilight or Stephanie Meyers characters but do own Lela and Ethan since I did create them.
