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Chapter 14: Quil

I felt her face nuzzle against my chest as she murmured in her sleep. We weren't far away from the house now.

I tightened my grip on her as I stepped over a log, treading lightly so I wouldn't wake her.

Well, tonight went to shit, I grumbled. The alcohol had all but cleared from my system, my brain forced itself to sober up when I tracked Claire into the woods.

The back porch light glowed in the distance through the trees. My chest still throbbed, as if I could feel every bit of grief that she went through. I couldn't stop replaying her face in my head: broken, betrayed, confused. I wanted to take away all of her pain, spare her from reliving it all over again.

She stirred slightly as I trudged out of the trees, shifting in my arms.

"Shh, it's ok," I murmured softly, pulling the back door open with my foot as I stepped inside.

I lay her down and sat on the foot of the bed, tenderly taking her shoes off before pulling the blanket up to her shoulder. Her breathing was slow and steady, but her eyes darted back and forth behind her eyelids.

She was so still amidst the chaos from tonight. She curled her hands up to her chin, her knees tucking against her stomach under the blanket. Every fiber of my being wanted to lay next to her, wrap her in my arms and relish in the same peace. But I also couldn't get her voice to stop echoing in my ears.

I don't want to see you, she said to me.

I don't want to see you.

"Quil?"

Jake's voice caused my spine to stiffen reflexively. I looked back to my imprint asleep in my bed before shutting the door softly behind me.

"Is Leah ok? I need to tell her I'm sorry," I sighed as I stepped outside.

Jake folded his arms over his chest. He still wore the flannel that he had on before, he must not have phased since the beach. "Leah's fine. Is she ok?"

I, too, wrapped my arms across my chest. "Yeah, she's tired."

He nodded. "What does she know?" He eyed me pointedly.

I locked eyes with him, "Jake—"

"What else did you tell her?"

"I didn't say a damn thing," I stepped to him, closing the distance between us. "Though I have half a mind to drag you in there and apologize for what you've put her through," my upper lip curled as my pulse quickened.

"You and I both know that choice didn't come from me," he retaliated. "And even if it did, it is for her own good."

"Her own good?" I repeated, dumbfounded. "Did you not see her tonight? You were there that day, Jake. You and I saw what he did to her thirteen years ago— you tell me right now that she doesn't have a right to know!" I growled. My breath heaved in and out of my chest as my wolf fought against my composure to come out.

"Quil," he warned, shaking his head. "Don't do this, man."

"She needs to know," I pointed back to the house. "What am I supposed to tell her? 'Leah is full of shit?' She's going to have a million questions the second that she wakes up and she already thinks I betrayed her," my heart squeezed in my chest.

"I agree but it's not our call," he stood firm.

"Oh, come on!" I rolled my eyes. "Since when do you still follow Sam's orders?"

"Since I respect his decisions about his daughter."

"She's not even his daughter," I snapped.

"They raised her," his eyes narrowed. "It's his choice and if you have a problem with that then take it up with him,"

I clenched my jaw, my fists clenching at my sides.

"Quil, I'm not against you," he clarified, his face relaxing. "Sam's not going to be happy that she knows as much as she does, but it happened, there's nothing we can do about it now."

"What do I say to her, Jake?" I lamented. "How can we expect her to understand why we didn't tell her?"

He shook his head, thinking deeply. "We will need to talk to Sam about it. If anyone is responsible for telling her what's going on, it's him."

I rubbed my eyes with my hand, I wanted this to all go away. "She's never going to forgive me."

"Hey," he rested his hand on my shoulder. "It's ok, we will keep her safe."

At that moment, the notion that the love of my life was being hunted by a vampire seemed almost insignificant compared to the daunting task of convincing Claire to forgive me.

My body was drained as I tailed Jake through the woods. I didn't know what time it was but judging by the angle of the moon I assumed dawn would rise in the next couple hours.

He let out a piercing howl as we treaded through the brush, calling out to Sam.

He's going to kill me, I whined, my ears laying back as I ran alongside him.

He'll understand what happened, Jake reassured me.

We crossed into Sam's territory, our ears perked as we listened for any potential threats. Jake slowed to a smooth trot as we continued on. A nostalgic feeling washed over me when I recognized the woods around us, the same trees and logs that we used to patrol through when Jake, Embry, and I first phased. They were distant memories, overshadowed by everything that has happened since.

A snarl ripped through the night air, the hair on my back standing on end as I turned in a defensive stance to protect my alpha.

He was short and lanky, maybe even smaller than Seth. One whiff confirmed that I wasn't familiar with this wolf, who now mirrored my stance, jumping back and forth as he gnashed his teeth at us.

Don't do it, I let out a warning growl, knowing I couldn't communicate with him.

Quil— Jake ordered behind me.

Sam's growl echoed off the trees as the small wolf flinched, whimpering as his tail tucked.

Sam's lips curled to flash his teeth at the cowering wolf, who looked back at me and flashed his teeth before retreating into the bushes.

He's new, Jake informed me as Sam bounded to us. Didn't know it was us. Sam's had two new members phase this week.

I looked back to Jake, baffled. Two? Because of the leech?

Jake grumbled and eyed me; ever since he imprinted on Ness the insulting phrases for 'vampire,' were quickly replaced from our vocabulary. But Embry and I slipped up from time to time— old habits die hard.

I circled around and flanked Jake as Sam faced us, everyone sitting back on their haunches.

I wanted to apologize to him, even though it wasn't my fault. I didn't report to Sam anymore, but a feeling of intimidation still lingered in me. Maybe it was because his adopted daughter was my imprint. Jake was the only one in our pack who could hear Sam now, their connection as alphas remaining intact when the packs split.

They exchanged grunts and grumbles as I was left to imagine what they were saying. My ears flew back as Sam's eyes locked on me, his lip curling as he snarled.

Jake snapped back, blocking me from Sam's glare.

It wasn't your fault, Quil, he clarified as I stood up, ready to defend myself.

My ears swiveled as I watched Sam rise, his upper lip twitching as his eyes darted between us. He looked like he was ready to tear me apart.

He doesn't want her to live with you anymore, Jake blocked Sam from my view, standing directly in between us.

Are you serious?! I growled. He can't do that.

I'm working on it, Jake grumbled.

Something Jake said changed Sam's demeanor. He began pacing back and forth, alternating glances with Jake and the ground before he let out a loud huff.

Jake nodded his head in resolution, Sam snorting at me before walking away in the same direction as the small wolf.

What the hell happened? I asked impatiently.

Jake shook his head, exasperated. He doesn't believe we are doing everything we can to keep her safe.

We have constant patrols, I groaned. He hasn't been in our territory since last week.

He sighed heavily, clearly just as tired as I was. He wants to be more involved. Especially now that his presence is causing others to phase.

She's an adult, he can't force her to move back in with them, I whined. I can't lose her, Jake. Hell, maybe after tonight she wanted to leave.

She's not going anywhere, he answered. He wants to coordinate patrols on our territory so that there are more wolves on alert. It will be cramped, but if it makes him feel better so be it.

The sky was pink as I trudged into the back yard, rays of sun cutting through the branches as I phased. I felt as if my body was a hundred pounds heavier as I stumbled through the backdoor. I blindly walked through my house, my eyes refusing to stay open as I quietly opened the bedroom door. My knees gave out and I slumped onto the bed, groaning softly. All of my limbs fell limp as I melted into the mattress.

Electricity shot through my brain and my eyes shot open. My head whipped around, studying the empty space next to me.

"Claire?" I breathed. My eyes darted around, the sun had started to peek through the window and cast shadows on the wall.

"Claire!?" I hurled myself off the bed, all symptoms of fatigue long gone from my body. "Baby?!" I couldn't breathe fast enough as I frantically ran through the house.

"No, God please, no," I was ready to fall to my knees, every worst-case scenario racing through my mind.

Something in the kitchen caught my eye and I hurried to the fridge, snatching the paper taped to it.

Quil,

I'm sorry. I'm safe, but I need some time. Going to Harley's— will call later.

Claire

I read it, then again. I crumbled the piece of paper in my hand before throwing it, yelling in frustration. I looked to the countertop and noticed my truck keys were nowhere to be found. She's long gone, clearly didn't want to talk to me anytime soon, and he was still out there.

Fuck.