For more Reviews you will get the next chapter even faster.. And yes, its blackmailing.

Sue Clearwater

Sue Clearwater was a pragmatic woman. Her willpower was sometimes interpreted as stubbornness, a quality that she passed on to her daughter. She had put up with the transformation of her children and the early death of her husband with her usual strenght and was proud.

And it was precisely this strength, pride and love for her children that drove her to the hospital that day. Because the only thing that threw Sue off track was when her daughter disappeared.

"Carlisle, please."

She studied him with watchful eyes, he had fine features, especially for a man, and yet he looked masculine with his cheekbones, straight nose and chin. His eyes were mesmerizing despite their unnaturalness, and she was surprised that his voice was in no way inferior to his appearance. Although she knew of his species and was repulsed for that alone, she had to admit that he was indeed immaculately beautiful.

He found her silence uncomfortable, she could see that. His eyes flickered back and forth between the desk behind her and her face and every time he looked at her they lit up almost imperceptibly, as if she were reminding him of someone. It didn't take a genius to realize that he saw a lot of Leah in her. Or rather the other way around.

It was her tactic, with two kids, one of whom was still a teenager, she knew exactly how to break someone. It was a bit of a surprise, though, that this worked even with vampires. He cleared his throat and she could see how he gathered his thoughts.

"I have to tell you that I am deeply sorry for what I did to Leah and to you, and I sincerely apologize for this. Please believe me that my actions were only for the best of intentions."

The words he used and how he pronounced them were from a time Sue and even her grandparents hadn't seen. His eyes sparkled and Sue could well imagine that he bewitching pretty much everyone he met. There was nothing malicious in his look and his fine features looked trusting.

But Sue Clearwater wasn't just any young nurse who cared about beauty and let herself be carried away by it.

"Best intentions? I'm curious."

She crossed her arms in front of her body and saw with satisfaction how he took half a step back. She would only succeed in intimidating a vampire once in a lifetime, that much was certain.

"I was married at the time."

His choice of words was deliberate and of course it bit them. If he offered it that way, she would ask too.

"Was? So you split up? Just like that?"

Suddenly his eyes darkened and Sue's heartbeat skyrocketed. At that second it occurred to her that it might not be the best idea to provoke a vampire after all. As quickly as his eyes turned black, as quickly after a blink they were back to the soft ocher tone from before. He let out a breath and suddenly looked lost.

"Esme and I were married for almost a century, I thought she was my mate. She thought so too. I assure you, we didn't split up just like that. "

His voice was velvety and clear, but she heard the pain and suddenly felt bad. She had to admit that she expected something else. Someone else.

Charlie spoke of Edward like a critical father of his daughter's first boyfriend, and yet there was truth in it. Edward really seemed proud and unapproachable.

But Carlisle was different.

It was hard to blame him for something he so obviously regretted and it was even harder to hate him for something he couldn't help. It was obvious that he hadn't chosen the imprint any more than Leah had.

But she remembered the time when Sam disappeared and reappeared. When he had imprinted on her sister's daughter of all persons and left Leah behind. Leah suffered from her broken heart and it was only when the irony of fate struck with full force and had it imprinted on a vampire that she began to find the old Leah again.

The ease that Sam had taken slowly returned and Sue was grateful in spite of everything. It's hard enough for a mother to see her own child suffer, but what Carlisle's absence did to her daughter frightened her.

It was as if all life and all hope were sucked out of her and Sue didn't know what to do anymore. She had lost her husband and was about to lose her daughter too. There were things that could be forgiven, but not forgotten. And the fear that caught Sue when Leah was suddenly gone would haunt her for the rest of her life. She couldn't go through this again.

"And Leah is your mate? Are you sure of that?"

The pain and remorse were gone from his gaze and he looked her straight in the eye. It was a piercing look and someone with less willpower would probably have shrunk back. But not Sue Clearwater.

"Yes."

His voice was firm and there was no trace of doubt in it. Sue wanted to believe him, she wanted it for Leah and for her whole family.

But Sue Clearwater was pragmatic.

And so she left no doubt that he had to rebuild the trust that he had so carelessly destroyed.

Maybe not with Leah or Seth. But with her.

"We will see."

Carlisle

He looked at her in surprise and was immediately saved by the loudspeaker. His presence in the emergency room was needed and he was grateful. He bid his goodbye and fled his office.

He had known that the conversation would not be a pleasant one, but still he did not expect so much aversion.

Wasn't it obvious how he felt about Leah? Otherwise why would he have left his family? And more importantly, what was Leah thinking? Did she also doubt his feelings?

Although he was glad the shift was over and he was already longing for Leah's warmth, he was not so enthusiastic about the idea of living under Sue Clearwater's doubtful and watchful gaze.

Especially not today.

He was all the more relieved when he stood in front of the house and could only smell Leah and Seth's scent. Out of the corner of his eye he noticed a wolf, which as soon as he was near the house turned away and trotted away.

He wasn't sure if it was about his safety or more about the safety of the rest of the reservate. Carlisle sighed. He had expected distrust, but not to the same extent. Or at least he hoped it would.

Of course he could understand the antipathy towards him, after all, he was her natural enemy. He was the reason they had transformed in the first place.

He heard Seth playing his video games and Leah, who was clearing the food in the kitchen. They must have smelled him by now and he noticed that the strong scent of Seth was slowly waning. Presumably he had just gotten used to it by now.

When he entered the house Leah looked up relieved and gave him an illegible look. Carlisle frowned. Did he look so unreliable that she thought he wouldn't come back? The mood was tense and he tried to loosen it up as much as possible. He pointed to the dirty plates.

"Was Embry there?"

Leah looked at him confused until her lips curled into a big smile and Carlisle knew that if he had a beating heart, it would probably just stop.

Immediately he had to smile too and he took a step towards her. He took her hand and saw her gaze wander down. She looked at his hand with interest and he suddenly realized that she had only now really noticed that his wedding ring was no longer in its place.

She pulled him effortlessly into her room and he noticed with displeasure that her mood had still not really improved. He, on the other hand, feasted on the warmth it exuded and immediately felt relieved. He was already working out various things in his head when she interrupted him.

"Seth didn't make it."

Her voice sounded so depressed that Carlisle immediately took a step towards her. He put his free hand on her shoulder and was relieved when she immediately made contact and pulled him into a hug. Carefully he put his cheek to her head and breathed in and out deeply. It was as if all the tension and worries were leaving him with every breath and he felt the strange but welcome feeling - completion.

They stayed in that position until he heard Seth cursing and felt Leah immediately tense up.

"How is he?"

Leah sighed and shrugged.

"I don't know, he doesn't want to talk to me."

Carlisle nodded and immediately saw the look she gave him. At first he felt honored that she would trust him and at the same time he was afraid to say the wrong thing. It was harder to break away from her than he had thought, but finally he knocked carefully on Seth's door.

"I SAID I AM NOT HUNGRY LEAH!"

The vampire then carefully opened the door and ventured a quick glance inside. Seth was startled and immediately took off his headphones.

"May I come in?"

The young shapeshifter nodded immediately and made room for Carlisle in front of the small screen on the floor. He handed him a controller wordlessly and Carlisle inevitably remembered Emmett and Jasper and their sometimes playful and sometimes not so playful fights.

It was a game he already knew and he couldn't find anything appealing about it, but if Seth wanted to play with him, he would. After a few laps, Carlisle got the hang of it and was enjoying the company of Seth. While he cheered every kill, he was fair and encouraged Carlisle at every opportunity. He enjoyed every advance Carlisle made, even if it harmed him. Seth was really easy to like. Carlisle took a deep breath and considered his next words.

"When I was transformed, I hated myself. I tried to starve myself and hid in a cave. I thought that was the only good thing I could do for humanity - die. But when I noticed that I could survive without human blood, I had the hope that one day I would really be able to help people. I practiced day and night. For centuries. Until I finally could be a real doctor. Now I don't mind blood anymore, I hardly notice it anymore. Something I could never have dreamed of back then. "

Carlisle caught the quileut's watchful gaze and continued to stare at the screen. The situation was emotionally charged and Carlisle felt almost uncomfortable under Seth's gaze. He evaluated his words and Carlisle sincerely hoped that he would draw this hope from it as he did himself.

Seth let out a discouraged breath and sighed. He was visibly embarrassed that Carlisle knew about it and he immediately tried to cheer him up.

"What I'm trying to say is that some things just take time. And sometimes you need more time for something than others. But in the end it does not matter. The success is the same."

It only took a few seconds for a mischievous grin to spread on Seth's face and immediately Carlisle saw the resemblance to Leah in it.

"You only say that because I'm about to destroy you."

With that he started the next round and laughed as he shot Carlisle's head off in the game. Carlisle gave a hoarse laugh and was more than happy to have cheered the wolf up. At least he hoped so. The thought that Seth doubted his abilities and was perhaps even ashamed of it was painful for him and he took himself to support his mates younger brother as best he could.

Leah

The conversation between Carlisle and Seth could not be overheard thanks to her highly sensitive hearing and Leah was relieved.

Inevitably she thought of Sam. When they were still together, Seth fell in love with him. He looked up to him and followed him everywhere. And while Sam wasn't a bad person and tried hard, feelings were definitely not part of his strong points. He has always been a leader, he liked to make decisions and was rarely told anything.

Which naturally led to one or the other quarrel between them - because Leah also did not like to be told anything. Seth had adored him and when he disappeared he hadn't just left Leah. He also left Seth behind. In her pain she hadn't been aware of it and she was ashamed for being so selfish.

After his transformation, Seth could understand Sam better, but he still kept his distance. Suddenly he no longer saw Sam on the pedestal where he had placed him for years, but he judged Sam's qualities soberly. And Leah knew, even if it wasn't Seth's nature to say it out loud, that it wasn't just because of the Emily thing that he had changed his mind about Sam.

And with Carlisle he now had the best role model a person could have.

Carlisle was different.

There was no better way to put it. Where Sam was stubborn and sometimes narrow-minded, Carlisle was kind and indulgent. It seemed to Leah that Carlisle didn't have a single malignant fiber in his body, which was amazing considering what Carlisle was.

Her thoughts revealed feelings that had nothing to do with the imprint. Soulmates or not, you just had to like Carlisle and Leah thought that she was actually damn lucky.

As if he could read her mind, he knocked carefully on her door and entered immediately. Apparently he had heard that she was still awake and Leah watched his eyes darken when he saw her.

Her heartbeat skyrocketed and Leah had to get used to the sight of him again. Her gaze wandered along his body and she felt a different feeling come up inside of her. Fortunately for her, he hadn't noticed, or at least didn't comment.

"Your mother was in the hospital today."

Confused, she watched him sit down next to her on the bed. This time he hesitated only imperceptibly and Leah's heartbeat answered again when he touched her lightly. It was almost as if he would ask permission before every contact and Leah wondered for how long it would be like that.

"Is everything OK?"

She knew that he understood immediately that she wasn't talking about her mother, but him. Sue Clearwater was a natural disaster that could roll over you.

He weighed the words carefully and nodded slightly. When she caught his gaze, she was surprised at the abundance of emotions in his now dark eyes. He looked at her intently, as if he was trying to read her mind and Leah couldn't really figure it out.

"I will never forgive myself for what I did to you Leah. Never."

His hand cupped her shoulder and despite the exhilaration, she could hear the pain in his voice. Leah found it strangely easy to forgive him and just forget the time he was gone. Since it did not correspond to her character at all, she blamed it on her imprint and her instinct. Even so, it was hard to be angry with him. Especially when he said something like that. But still she felt the fear that he would disappear again.

"I hope you're not only here because you're afraid I might fall off a cliff."

It was meant as a joke, but it came straight from within Leah. It was her greatest fear that he was with her just because of his benevolence and compassion, and his words didn't make it any better. His face twisted suddenly and Leah immediately regretted her words. Sensitivity was definitely not among her virtues.

"No I'm not."

Though Leah could hear that he had more to say, but she was content. He had been married until recently. Longer than Leah was in this world. She leaned closer to him and her stomach contracted joyfully when she felt how he also tried to deepen the contact. She felt his cool cheek on her hair and heard him take a deep breath. No matter what she told herself, he felt the effects of the imprint just as much as she did and that had to be enough for her for now.

Maybe she should just take his words more to heart. Some things just took time.