Chapter 3: Run Away & Never Return

No One's POV

Benji looked up at Dr. Cullen with wide sparkling eyes. "You do?!"

Carlisle nodded, taking a seat next to Benji on the couch. "My family has met a few people like your father while traveling here. They're from the Quileute tribe, who prefer to think of themselves as protectors. Like them, your father is not a true child of the moon, but a shifter."

Benji looked at him curiously. Dr. Cullen was using a lot of words that he'd heard from his family's stories, but he didn't know how he knew about shifters. Not a lot of people believe in legends and it's not like shifters advertise what they are to the world. Randomly, his brain thought back to his grandfather telling him stories about 'The Cold Ones.' He scrunched his eyebrows in thought as he looked Dr. Cullen up and down. He seemed normal enough, though he did notice a few things that seemed off. His skin was whiter than most people's and his eyes were a weird gold color. He tentatively reached out his hand to touch Dr. Cullen, feeling the ice-cold skin that made him ask. "Dr. Cullen, are you and your family a part of 'The Cold Ones'?"

Carlisle had observed that Benji was very perceptive for his age, but he was still floored by his question. "Yes, Benji. But we're different from others of our kind. My family doesn't feed off of the blood of humans. We drink animal blood instead."

The fact that the Cullen were different made Benji feel better about the whole thing. But it also made him wonder why people on the reservation were so mean to them. It didn't make sense. "That's a good thing though, right? Why are some people so against you and your family on the reservation?"

Carlisle chuckled and ruffled the boy's hair. "It's because we are still a part of 'The Cold Ones' and in their eyes, even if we are different, we're still considered an enemy."

In a way, Benji knew what he was talking about. People on the reservation treated his family differently because their skin was equivalent to that of a pale face. "Or maybe they're just mean."

Carlisle watched him closely, a small smirk on his face. "I take it by the facial expressions you're making that you have some firsthand experience?"

Benji nodded at once and his face scrunched up in anger. "Just because my family looks like pale faces, they think they're better than us. They were supposed to help my daddy, but they didn't believe him and now he hurt my mommy!"

Carlisle placed a gentle hand on Benji's shoulder and remained silent. He knew that he had to tell Benji about his mother's condition, but this boy was so pure of heart. He didn't want to have to go into detail about what happened. "About that, Benji, your mother made it through the surgery just fine, but some of her injuries are very serious." He paused as he took in Benji's facial expressions. "She has a severe injury to her spine and while we did everything we could, we believe that she may not walk again."

Benji sat quietly as he took in what Dr. Cullen had said. He knew his mother was badly hurt, so this didn't come as a shock to him, but he was still sad about it. He looked at Dr. Cullen with tears in his eyes and asked, "So does that mean I'm not gonna be a big brother again?"

Carlisle nodded solemnly. "Unfortunately, your mother's body has gone through a tremendous amount of stress, and she lost the pregnancy. I'm so sorry, Benji."

No matter how much he tried to wipe them away, the tears still came rolling down his face. After a few minutes, Benji turned to Dr. Cullen with determination on his face. "Can you take me to her? I don't want her to be alone."

Carlisle nodded and offered Benji a kind smile. "Of course, I'll take you there right away.

Benji nodded and followed Carlisle to his mother's room where she was propped up in bed with all sorts of machines surrounding her. In a moment of panic, Benji backed up and ran as far as his little legs could take him.

Carlisle sighed as he watched Benji run away, he wanted to bring him back, but also knew that he most likely needed some time to process everything that was happening. But he was pulled from his thoughts when he heard Meredith whisper his name. Since she was still recovering, he tried to console her and help her relax. "It'll be okay, Benji just needs some time to process all of this. It's hard for him to see you this way."

What she said next caught Carlisle's attention. "My ex-husband is here in the hospital; you have to find Benji."

How could she know this? Is it possible that she's a shifter too? But that wouldn't make sense, her injuries are far too severe. Carlisle thought as he looked down at Meredith.

But it was like she could read his mind because her next words were. "He was in my room before you came. I could smell his cologne and he threatened to take Benji & Avery away from me." She paused to open her eyes and as she did, she looked directly into Carlisle's, "I know what you are, and you need to help him."

Carlisle was stunned for a moment, as he had a flashback of the moment Edward's mother had asked him to do the same for her son many years ago. His eyes focused with determination as he gave her a nod and sped off to look for the young boy.

As he was running through the halls, Benji wasn't paying very much attention to where he was going and crashed into something hard, but what he hadn't realized was that it was his father (Jackson). When Benji looked up and saw who it was he couldn't utter a sound.

His father peered down at him and smirked. "Well, look at what we have here. If you come quietly with me, I won't have to hurt anyone."

Benji mustered all of his courage up and shook his head defiantly. "Dr. Cullen will know where I am! And you'll be in so much trouble!"

His father knelt to Benji's eye level, giving his son a wicked grin. "He can't protect you from me, no one can." He then leaned in close and whispered, "And if he tries, I'll do to him what I did to your mother."

Benji growled at that and tried to hit his father, but he was too slow, and his father caught his arm, dragging him out against his will. "I'm going to make you regret what you just tried to do. No one will take my family from me."

Since Carlisle was still in the hospital, he had to act as human as possible, which killed his chances of getting to Benji in time. But thankfully, there was a forest near the hospital, and he knew that's where Jackson Clark was most likely going to take his son.

Jackson had indeed taken a struggling Benji into the forest and once they were far enough, he threw Benji face first into a tree. "You want to fight? Let's fight!"

He chuckled darkly as Benji pushed himself up and ran at him, fists flying. Once Benji had gotten close enough he placed his hand on his son's face, holding him back using little strength and then pushed him hard to the ground. As Benji tried to get up his father swung his leg up and began to kick him repeatedly. "I admire your tenacity, but let's face it, son, no matter how many times you get up, you'll never match up to me. I'm bigger, faster, and stronger."

It was brutal, every time Benji got back up, his father was right there to knock him back down. But to Benji's credit, he wasn't about to give up. He pushed himself up once more and tried to take his father down, but to no avail.

Jackson laughed mercilessly as he watched his son struggle. He knelt down to Benji's level and smirked down at him. "Where's the great Carlisle Cullen now? I told you he couldn't protect you from me. Now, give up this nonsense at once!"
As Benji was about to give up, he saw something in the silhouette of the trees that gave him hope. The outline of Carlisle was slowly making his way through the forest. No doubt looking for a way to get Benji to safety.

Benji knew that if he had any chance, he had to keep his father talking. It worked in all his superhero shows. "I can't. I have someone that I have to protect."

Jackson let out an aggravated sigh and shoved Benji's head into the ground. "Don't you get it by now?! You're useless, a nothing! How do you expect to protect them from me, when you can barely protect yourself?!" Benji stayed silent as he had nothing to say. "I take it that your silence means that you know I'm right, so I'm going to give you two options. Option one, you can continue to fight me until I crush you like the pest that you are. Or option two, you can come to your senses and do whatever I say from now on. Which includes helping me cover everything up and punishing your mother for trying to hide you and your sister from me."
Benji's fists balled up and he shook his head defiantly. "I will never help you! Mama can't walk anymore after you hurt her, and she lost the baby!"

"Then I guess she's been punished enough." Jackson said coldly.

What happened next stunned everyone. Just as Carlisle was about to intervene, he noticed Benji's eyes change color and next thing he knew, Jackson Clark was thrown back as Benji burst into a huge white wolf. Carlisle didn't know much about shifters but he assumed due to his age that this was Benji's spirit wolf, in essence, how he saw himself inside. Even as Jackson phased into his wolf, it was smaller in comparison to Benji's. Now that they were on a level playing field, Jackson wasn't looking so hot. Carlisle couldn't help but laugh as Benji was decimating his father in combat.

And in the end, the real shocker came about. Benji had his father beat, to the point that his father's human form was present again. Benji stared down at his father and growled. But as his father made a move to stand back up and start things again, Benji let out a loud bark and his father literally froze, and he couldn't move.
Is this really happening? Could Benji be an alpha? Was he always alpha or did he win the title just now? Carlisle thought as he watched the interaction with fascination.

Benji phased back into his human form as well, still glaring at his father. He took several steps forward and his father was still frozen in place. His father had a scowl on his face as he realized the predicament, he was in. "Think you're so tough, now that you're alpha? I can see right through you and you're still a scared little pest. What are you going to do to me, huh? Don't have the courage to finish me off?"

Benji stood as tall as he could and said the words very clearly. "No, I'm not like you. But I want you to run. Run away and never return."

Benji's father spat at Benji's feet as he was finally freed from his bind. "Fine. I'll leave for now, but it's not the last you'll see of me. I'll be back."
Benji nodded and stood his ground. "And I'll be here, ready for you when you do." With that Benji's father phased into his wolf and took off into the forest.

Carlisle finally came out from his hiding spot and smiled down at Benji. "I would have intervened sooner, but it didn't seem like you needed my help."

"He just made me so mad, and I exploded." Benji said as he waved his arms in what he believed to be an explosion motion.

Carlisle chuckled as the two began to walk back to the hospital. "Yeah, but you handled yourself well and I love the little speech that you gave him at the end."

Benji smirked and said, "That was what Simba said to Scar in The Lion King, I just repeated it."

Carlisle nodded with a grin on his face. "I thought that I heard that somewhere before." He noticed that Benji was beginning to get tired and so he paused to pick him up. "You can lean on me if you want. I'll help you get cleaned up and we can talk to your mama."

Benji nodded and yawned as they walked back to the hospital. "That sounds cool. You don't think I'll be in trouble, right?"

Carlisle smirked as they walked into the parking lot. "I don't think so, but I do think this is the start of a beautiful friendship."

Benji had fallen asleep by this time, as he was exhausted, which just made Carlisle smile even more. Never in a million years did he think that he would befriend a shifter. And what he didn't know was that this friendship would help his family out in the long run.