"You're showing me the sights by taking me to a gym?" Leah demanded, staring at the neon sign proclaiming all the different ways one could get physically into shape.
Seth's plan was not earning any brownie points with her right now.
"Not just any gym. Emmett's Gym." Seth flashed a small, white card at a sensor, opened the door, and with a broad flourish, motioned for her to enter. "It's up this hallway. Part one of your healing is to find your athletic center."
"My athletic center?"
What a load of hooey. Years of school physical education classes had shown her she had no athletic ability when it came to group sports, and in school, everything was group sports.
"You're going to need some sort of physical activity. Something strenuous. Especially if you want to keep the wolf tamed. Can't have her running around Seattle willy-nilly."
Leah groaned.
"Mom told you? Damnit."
"Leah. It made the news about a giant wolf running through Forks. Peeing in Sam's convertible was a nice touch, by the way. That had to cost a pretty penny to get out of the leather."
"I'm not the only one in Forks," she whispered. "And keep your voice down! Someone might hear and…"
"It's okay here. This is a safe place." He opened the door to main gym floor and waved her in.
She had been to a gym before, but as she gazed around, nothing looked, smelled, or sounded like where Jake and the pack frequented back home. This was all bright, unnatural lighting without a window in sight. The air held a strange, icy sweetness to it. Leah had the vaguest memory of that scent, but found she could not place it. It was familiar but just beyond her recollection. And then there was the sounds—weights being used at a speed that seemed inhuman, of treadmills and ellipticals tested to their mechanical limits. In the background, not one, but at least five different musical styles were playing over the speakers.
"Seth? What is this?" She turned her head to take in one side of the building and panned across to try to rationalize and synthesize what she saw.
"Sethster!" A loud, booming voice interrupted her thoughts and Leah jumped as a mountain of a man grabbed her brother in a hug.
"Em!" Seth shouted with a grin, wrestling to free himself.
Leah watched in confused rapture as the two fought playfully, each obtaining the upper hand momentarily, before losing to the other. In the end, 'Em' won, holding Seth in a headlock and tousling his hair.
"Don't scuff the 'do!" the young man cheerfully grumbled, using both hands to smooth it down once he was released.
The larger man grinned broadly, barely breathing hard at all. In fact, Leah realized, the man was not breathing. She tilted her head in question and studied him as well as his movements. Fair skin, no breathing, almost inhuman strength.
"What—"
"You must be Leah." The man turned to face her, and she noticed his gold eyes.
"Seth." She stiffened, recognizing the man, no creature, before her for what he was. Without a conscious thought, she took a step backward, bumping into her brother.
"It's cool, Lee. It's cool."
Leah felt a pair of hands rubbing up and down her arms, soothingly. But this was not cool. Not cool at all. Her brother had brought her to a…
"Vampire?" Emmett offered, a wry grin tugging at his lips. "I'm no mind reader, but it's pretty easy to see where your brain is going."
"I…I need to sit down." Leah teetered slightly on her feet before finding herself gently guided toward an office and into a seat. A bottle of water was placed before her.
She put her head down between her legs. Jesus Fucking Christ. Her own brother had brought her to a vampire so he could put her out of her misery.
"Seth, what have you done?" she murmured, squeezing her eyes shut and shaking her head.
"I'm going to guess that you didn't prep her before bringing her here," Emmett offered, sitting behind the desk. He propped his feet up, crossing them at the ankle.
"If you had seen her the past week, you wouldn't have taken the chance, either, Big Boy," Seth countered.
"Alright." Emmett turned toward Leah who was regaining a bit of her color and her heartrate had dropped from code red to highly elevated. "Yes, I'm a vampire. This is my gym. We cater to supernatural creatures across the spectrum. No, I don't partake of human blood. I'm a vegetarian."
He chuckled at that joke but quickly sobered when Leah did not join in.
"I drink from animals only. Vegetarian? Come on. It's a funny h'yoke!"
Leah blinked owlishly.
"Global processor a bit slow, eh? Well, it makes sense." Emmett motioned toward the water. "Take a few swigs. I'll grab you a candy bar, because in about five minutes, your sugar is going to crash like the Hindenburg."
In a blur, he left the room and returned holding two choices.
"Feel like a nut or not?" he asked, raising one and then the other.
"That's the tag for Mounds and Almond Joys, not Milky Ways and Snickers," Leah grumbled, motioning toward the Snickers.
"Never had any of them, so eh." He shrugged before handing over the candy bar.
Seth pulled out a drawstring bag from his satchel and placed it at Leah's feet.
"Emmett has come up with a plan to exorcise and exercise," Seth said as Leah munched on the chocolate bar.
"What's that?" She kicked at the bag.
"Change of clothes. I'm going to my yoga class while Emmett gives you a lesson in Jiu-Jitsu."
"It focuses on neutralizing size differences," Emmett explained. "You'll develop skills to grapple and take down attackers much larger than yourself, because, let's face it. You're fun-sized."
"I'm not short!" Leah straightened to her full height in her chair.
She was a respectable five and a half feet tall, thank you very much.
"But compared to the rest of the wolves, you are tiny. But. And here is the all important but. Other than my own, mind you," Emmett said with a saucy wink and a shake of his tush. "With a little training, none of them would dare step out of line around you. And think how satisfying it'll be to toss one of them to the ground without even trying."
Leah lost herself for a moment, picturing throwing Sam to the ground and standing over him. A slow smile spread over her face.
"That's what I'm talking about. Go change, and I'll meet you in Studio A."
