The Soldier's Daughter

It was almost noon when I left Eva's house and tromped through the trees. I could have phased, but I didn't know who was on patrol at the moment, and I didn't want to risk Tyler or Dan being there. Actually, I really just didn't want anyone in my mind right now.

Well, maybe I did want Tyler to see the images in my head now. My heart thumped erratically and I could almost feel Eva under my hands again, soft, heartbreakingly beautiful, smelling like mint and clean rain. I smiled smugly to myself as I burst through the threes into Sam's back yard.

I'd been so caught up in my thoughts of Eva that I hadn't noticed it was sunny today. The Uley girls were taking full advantage of it. There was a blanket spread on the grass, Abby was laying down, her nose in a bridal magazine. She carefully folded down the corner of a page before she flipped to the next one. Emily was sitting, Emma's head on her leg. They both had magazines out as well.

"Oh, Abby, look at this one." Emma said, pushing the magazine she was holding toward Abby. Abby took it in her hands, examining the picture critically. Emily noticed me first and she smiled warmly.

"Paul, how's Eva?" She asked.

"She's great. Just a dizzy spell." I answered.

"That girl needs to learn how to take care of herself." Emma said quietly, turning her face up to the sunbeams. I was reminded immediately of how much she looked like her mother, before the scars. Emily whapped her head softly.

"Behave, Emma." Emily chided before looking back up and inclining her head to the house. "Sam is in his office. There are cookies in the kitchen if Isaac hasn't eaten all of them yet."

"Thanks Emily." I said gratefully. "And Emma…" I smiled. "She doesn't have to learn how to take care of herself, I'm here."

Emma rolled her brown eyes and picked up another magazine. I ducked into Sam's kitchen, pausing to grab a cookie. It was chocolate chip, and it tasted just like heaven.

"Isaac." I said in greeting as I passed through the living room. Isaac looked up, smiled, and waved. It was the most cheerful I'd seen him since Echo's birthday party. I paused, confused.

"How's Delilah?" I asked. We'd taken off to quickly to be sure she was okay, although Jake had called when she woke up.

"She's fine, really. She was just a little shaken up." He grinned again. I forgot how sunny he was. I couldn't help but smile back at him. He was like a kid on Christmas.

"I'm guessing she talked to you?" I predicted. He absolutely beamed.

"She said she can forgive me. That's all I needed." He said, stretching. I shook my head in wonder as I trudged up the stairs. But then...I supposed Isaac would be good for Delilah, much better than he ever was for Echo. Delilah, lovely and self-critical, would benefit by having Isaac behind her.

Doors were hardly ever closed in Sam's house. Everything was always wide open. I slipped right into his office, he was on the phone. He held up a finger to acknowledge me.

Sam had started his own business when his own kids were babies. His construction company did work all over the area, and he was pretty successful at running it. Not to mention that his workforce was, for the most part, made up entirely of werewolves. This included me, Brady, Collin, Seth, and Quil. We could get any amount of work done in little time at all.

"Alright Paul, what's up?" Sam said finally, hanging up the phone and leaning back in his chair.

"I have a problem." I said, running my hand through my hair. His lips twitched.

"I'd say you have more than one." He taunted. I growled low. He raised an eyebrow and I sighed, dropping into the other chair and putting my head in my hands. Sam was quiet for a few seconds before he rose and shut the door.

"It's pretty serious?" He asked. I nodded. He sat back down, pulling a beer from the fridge under the desk and handing it to me. I sighed.

"It's Tyler Call. I'm going to have to murder him." I said finally. Sam blinked a few times, wrinkling his forehead.

"What'd he do? Tyler hasn't been in any trouble I've heard about, and the girls seem to know all the gossip." Sam said. I chuckled bitterly.

"Bet they haven't heard this gem." I said dryly. "Guess who Tyler has a dramatic, inconvenient crush on?"

Sam was quiet for a few seconds before he groaned, reaching down to open the fridge again. "Suddenly, I wish I had something stronger than beer." He mumbled resentfully.

"I want to kill him." I said matter-of-factly.

"That's Embry's son, he wouldn't like it very much." Sam mused. "Tyler…he's a good kid, Paul. He takes care of Dawn…helps his dad out. Has he done anything inappropriate?" He asked.

"Not that I know of." I fumed. "I'm scared, I'm scared he's going to end up hurting her Sam. Hell knows that if she wanted him, I'd step out, anything for her to be happy, but he…he can't love her as much as I do."

"I don't think this is a big deal." Sam said after a few minutes. I made a choking noise in the back of my throat. Sam cut me off before I could say anything else. "Tyler hasn't done anything, if he did, we would have heard about it. He can't think that Eva would choose him over you, you're her imprint, soulmate, all those hooky words."

"I'm not good enough for her, Sam." I moaned quietly. "I'm a cad, I was a manwhore, she doesn't know anyone except me. She's so innocent, so kind and beautiful. She's completely out of my league."

"I know how you feel." And Sam was looking out the window, his eyes soft and introspective as he examined Emily. "But things work out, they always do."

Silence settled around us as we drank our beers. Then Sam laughed, quickly turning it into a cough.

"Is there a reason Zack Luwen is in my yard?" He asked, trying to hide his bemused smile. I groaned.

"I think I should get a blindfold. And a last cigarette." I complained as I heaved myself up. Sam chuckled to himself as I made my way downstairs. I stepped onto the front porch just as Zack did. I couldn't quite look him in the eyes.

"I think we should go for a walk." He said civilly.

"Should I write my will first?" I asked hesitantly.

"You should have written it years ago." He said, too seriously. I looked at him, he was smirking.

"You get off on the fact that you're the one person that puts the fear of god in me." I accused as I followed him into the woods.

"I feel smugly superior to every other human being." He answered calmly.

"So you're not taking me out here to murder me?" I asked.

"She begged me not to make a scene. She says you're her boyfriend now. She says you kissed her." He said, running his hand through his messy brown hair before looking up at me.

"That's all true, but that's all we did, Zack. I promise." I swore.

"I know. She wouldn't lie to me." Zack answered immediately. "She's still just a kid, Paul. She's only seventeen." He sounded mournful.

"I know. I should have waited. But…it's what she wanted." I tried to defend myself. Zack just shook his head.

"She's old beyond her years. I blame it on the fact she sees the future." He smiled softly. "I never wanted kids, Paul. I thought the world…it was such a horrible place. I watched it ruin Cassie for so long…and she was the happiest thing on the planet for a couple hundred years. I didn't want to be part of raising children in that. Stella…Stella had faith in me I couldn't have in myself. And…when I first saw Eva…" He sat down, his smile wistful and nostalgic.

"You know we almost lost her, twice, before she was born. It was such a rough pregnancy, but Stella never gave up. She's much more optimistic than I am, she always was. I saw Eva for the first time, she was premature, so they wouldn't let us have a lot of time with her, but I saw her…and suddenly everything clicked into place for me. She's more than just my only daughter…she's my redemption. I used to think…life was expendable, until she was here. She's the one who taught me that life was beautiful."

"She's special Zack. I know that." I answered. "I love her."

"I know." He smiled. "I've seen that, but she's still my little girl. And she's finally in love with you." He sighed.

"I'll take care of her, Zack. I mean, I don't have a lot of money, but I'll work hard and I'll make sure she's comfortable and happy, and I'll keep her safe, and nobody in the world will ever love her half as much as I do." I promised.

"She doesn't need money, have you met Eva?" He snorted. "The fight is coming, Paul. Echo's gone, Delilah's going to be thirteen soon. It's just a matter of time. And she'll fight too. She's' not…she's not a fighter, but she won't stay behind."

And he buried his head in his hands in despair. I felt the same terror well up inside me. "I'm trusting you, Paul." Zack said. "If…when we do fight, I need you to make sure she makes it out okay. It's not just…it's not just for me. If we lose, Eva might be the only chance to make it right later down the line."

And I knew our thoughts were back to the clearing we'd been in thirteen years ago, when a gaggle of lovely, violet eyed children had come back to save one of their own. And I remembered, vividly, the way that Eva had curled into me, like I could protect her from everything.