Chapter 4:Confrontation

A/N: Okay... I am awful when it comes to regularly scheduled updates. Between buying a house and facing crippling anxiety, I have had a hard time finding the time and more so the energy to devote to writing. A friend of mine has gotten into Vlogmas where she posts a new video every day leading up to Christmas and it has renewed my energy to want to write again. So with that being said, here is a shorter chapter to tell you I haven't given up and more to come soon! Thanks for giving my story a chance. Cheers!

Emily's Point of View

One step was all it took. As soon as Sam began closing the gap between Emily and himself, she pushed herself back as if snapping back to reality. The anger resurfaced and she felt her face flush red. "How could you do that to Leah? Weren't you in love with her? Do you even understand what you have done to her?" Emily didn't understand why, but it hurt to yell at him, and seeing his face contort as if she had poured boiling water on him, made her want to take every word back.

His gaze never left Emily's and she could see his heart shatter. "I... you don't understand. I didn't want to... I love her..." He wouldn't finish any of his sentences and Emily found herself growing frustrated. She slammed her hand into the counter and felt her heart stutter when he winced. It was a few moments before he whispered, "Please, just... let me explain. Tomorrow?"

Emily pondered what he was offering. The love of her cousin's life was offering the truth for her. Maybe it could lead to some closure for Leah. She straightened her shoulders and while lifting her chin. "Fine, but I expect to hear nothing less than the truth." She turned around and walked out of the Kitchen. "What time will you be here?" She turned towards him but did not fully look in his direction.

He thought for what felt like the longest moment. "Be here at 1." With a curt nod, Emily turned back to Grace and thanked her for the afternoon before walking straight out of the house.

The entire drive home, Emily's mind was racing. One part of her brain wanted to know why she didn't demand answers that second, the other wondering what happened in that kitchen.

As soon as Emily pulled into the driveway of the Clearwaters' house, she could tell it wasn't the same atmosphere she had left. Her heart stuttered when she wondered whether what Sky had thought up had become the truth. Did something bad happen tonight? Emily sucked in a breath as she quickend her pace to the house. It wasn't long before she was standing in the dining room in front of the entire family. She looked around and noticed what felt so off. "Where's Sky-"

Seth was quick to cut her off. "Her dad came back. Stormed in here, grabbed her and dragged her home." His cheeks flushed red and he wouldn't make eye contact with anyone in the room. It was less than a couple seconds before he ran upstairs. Every member of the family winced as they heard his bedroom door slam shut.

It took a few moments for Emily to gain the courage. "Is he okay?" It was barely a whisper but her Auntie Sue looked up at her with tears brimming her eyes. If that wasn't answer enough, she shrugged and got up to leave the room too. Uncle Harry was quick to follow her out.

With just Leah and her alone in the room, it took awhile before either of them said anything. To Emily's surprise it was Leah who broke the silence. "What errands did you run?"

Emily hopped the delayed response didn't give her up. She hadn't thought of a solid alibi. "Well, I went down to that little convenient store by the beach. I wanted to see if they had any charities or youth programs like the ones I contributed to up on my Res. I donated some money to one of the local ones before First beach sucked me in."

Leah lifted the corner of her mouth in a shadow of a smile. "Makes sense." The silence stretched on for a few more minutes before she spoke again. "You know, you are becoming one of my best friends Emily. Thank you for being here for me. Not sure what I would do if I lost you too..."

Emily gleamed but felt as though it may have missed her eyes. "Thanks Leah, it means a lot. I will always be here for you, no matter what. You are my baby cousin after all!" Leah gave her that same shadow of a smile and Emily watched as her eyelids fell. "You're tired, why don't we go to bed?" Leah smiled gratefully and took her extended hand.

No further conversation was exchanged as they made their way upstairs and got themselves ready for bed. With very quick goodnights, they were off to their own rooms.

Emily kept tossing and turning with unease about Sky and Sam. She was doing everything in her power to keep the worry at bay for now, as worrying wouldn't help either party.

It was as if Emily had just shut her eyes when they flew back open to the sound of screaming from the house next door. Rushing out into the hallway, she saw Leah and Seth fly by, clearing not being the only one who had heard. "What's going on?" She stammered out as she chased the rest of her family down the hall.

When they all reached the bottom steps, Auntie Sue was looking up at them with doe eyes. It was in this look Emily realized the situation as in fact as bad as her mind made it out to be.

It took only a few more seconds for each person in the house to make their way out to the front lawn.

Once they were all outside, they could hear a shouting voice they all recognized coming through crystal clear. "If you guys don't want me, then why don't you just give me away? I'm sure Mo-Sue and Harry wouldn't mind me living there!"

Emily looked over to her Aunt and Uncle and saw them exchange worried looks.

It was silent for a beat before they heard the next voice. Emily wasn't sure she would have heard it if the windows had been shut. "She has a good point you know. That way neither of us have to deal with the repercussions of it.

"Her you ninny, I am a girl. Not an it!" Emily felt her heart crush. What else had this young girl been through?

"You shut up. No one cares for your opinion." A movement took Emily's attention away from the eavesdropping. She looked over to see a very angry Seth trying to break free of Uncle Harry's grip. It brought the ever looming tears to the forefront of Emily's eyes. Sky was her little cousin's whole world.

"If you don't mind, I'm going to the Clearwaters' house for the night. See you tomorrow." The neighbor's door creaked open and a very disgruntled looking Sky stormed her way through it without waiting for a reply from her parents. As soon as the door had closed, Seth wriggled through Uncle Harry's grip and tackled Sky into a hug. After a few minutes, he stood up and held a hand out to her. He didn't let go, even after she was safely on two feet. She leaned up and whispered something in his ear.

With a soft eye roll, Seth whispered back, "You don't ever have to ask." She nodded anyways but continued with the question.

"Hey mom, would it be okay if I stayed another night?" Sky stared at Auntie Sue's feet as if she was afraid of the answer.

Leaning forward Sue tilted Sky's chin towards herself so she could make eye contact. "You are always welcome in this house, dear." With a smile that didn't quite reach her eyes, Sky bounded up the stairs with Seth in tow.

The silence and slowness that everyone else dissipated made Emily realize how often of an occurrence this was. When she herself finally gained the courage to make her way back upstairs, she poked her head into Seth's room to check on the two kids. They were both curled up in the blankets, fresh tear tracks clear on their face. Emily had a small but sad smile on her face when she headed back to her room.

She paced for an hour, trying to tire herself enough to fall asleep. When she realized this was likely impossible, she sighed but made her way to her dresser to pick out yet another day's wardrobe.

Quietly sneaking down the stairs, Emily sniffed at the air. She smelled the strong aroma of her favorite coffee. Turning the corner she saw Auntie Sue brewing coffee for Uncle Harry who was heading out fishing with his friend, Billy. Not that she would tell anyone else, but her nervous energy had more to do than the interaction she witnessed with Sky.

As she readied herself a coffee, she thought of just how she would yell at the man who stole her heart with just one look, for breaking her best friend's heart. Before she even knew it, she was looking at the time 11:30 dashing across the oven. The nervous energie spiked tenfold, and Emily was quick to offer her help to Sue who was preparing lunch for the house.

As if she hadn't been just a room over, Emily smelled the aroma in the air and followed it to the kitchen. "Hey Auntie Sue! Homemade pea soup?"

The smile was clear in her answer. "Yeah, mmmmm." Once Emily had rounded the corner, she whispered, "It's one of Leah and Sky's favorites." Emily felt her face soften even further and nodded her understanding. After offering her services, Auntie Sue looked up at her and back at the soup. "I have this taken care of, but maybe you can go check on Leah for me?" Emily grinned a sad smile and agreed wholeheartedly.

Emily found herself nervous to knock. When she gathered enough courage, the knock on Leah's door was barely loud enough for the younger girl to hear. "Hey Leah, can I come in?"

The muffled grunt from the other side could be taken as either a yes or no, but Emily decided to risk it. Once Emily opened the door, she saw Leah curled against the headboard, staring into space. Emily slowly made her way to the spot beside her and held her hand. After a few minutes of needed silence, Leah finally spoke with tears sliding down her cheeks. "Why wasn't I good enough for him?"

The sudden bluntness of the statement made tears rise in Emily's eyes as well. "You are perfect the way you are Leah. Don't let a man make you doubt yourself. If he is stupid enough to let you go, he never deserved you to begin with."

Leah dropped her head onto Emily's shoulder and Emily began to feel the tears pool. Wrapping her arms tightly around her cousin, they stayed in that position until Auntie Sue came and called all the kids down for lunch.

When Leah was ready, Emily took her lead and walked silently down the stairs to lunch. They sat down close enough their shoulders were still touching. From the look on their faces, everyone knew not to ask many questions. Lunch was passing by quietly until there was a loud knock on the door.

The knock seemed to electrify Auntie Sue as she straightened up and didn't move until an additional knock came.

When the door squeaked open, Auntie Sue's voice was curt. Oh... Hello Steve."

"Hi Suzy. Is my little angel here?" The words were slurred and Emily briefly wondered if the person at the door was drunk.

"If you mean Sky, then yes she is here. What is it you need?" Emily felt her jaw drop. This was the closest she had ever heard to her aunt being mean.

"Yes I do mean that. Can you go fetch her for me. We have some arrangements that need to be worked out and she very rudely left in the middle of something this morning." Emily scowled, even his voice sounded slimy.

"She only likes dogs, you do realize she isn't actually one, right?"

As if cold water were poured on him, Sky's father reversed tones quickly. "Fine then! Goddamn bitch just go and get my damn daughter when I ask for her!"

Eyes darting around the room, Emily took in each reaction to what was happening. The loudest and most surprising was Sky's.

Her spoon slammed down from the table and she was off like a rocket.

"You do not, I repeat, DO NOT talk to her like that!" Seth was quick on her tail and Emily felt she could practically see his heart beating. Emily and Leah didn't wait much longer before bounding off of the younger kids. They made it to the doorway in time to see Sky being led away by her ear lobe.

"I have never disliked someone so much for such small interactions with them..." Emily said quietly. Looking back at the family, Emily saw the tears brimming in Leah's eyes, the blood red fury in Seth's and the absolute heartbreak trying to make its appearance known in Sue's. It was almost as if a part of each of them had been dragged out the front door.

In the midst of trying to figure out how to right this situation, Emily was startled to realize she needed to leave. "I am just going to go for a drive... I will be back later." Sue nodded a brief, curt nod, but no response was given from anyone else. After retrieving her keys from the house, she took a deep breath as she readied herself for what was to come.

Emily's mind was so out of place that when she headed for the front door at Sam's place, she actually jumped in surprise when a warm hand wrapped around her arm, leading her away.

"C'mon Em, let's go for a walk while I explain everything I can to you." Emily found herself following this relative stranger without hesitation.

They walked for what seemed like forever before Emily planted her feet. "Are you going to explain what is going on or not?" She tried to sound angry but knew that it didn't quite come out like that.

"It's not something you'll necessarily believe..." The cryptic messages were not helping.

She stopped dead in her tracks and gripped both his shoulders. Even with the force of her stare, he avoided her eyes at all cost. "Try me."

Sam looked off into the forest for a long moment before turning back to her. "Have you heard of the legends of the Quileutes?"

Emily tore through her memories. "When I was younger. But I live on a different reservation so I haven't really heard them in a while."

The ever present from on Sam's face intensified. "Well that makes everything harder." He thought about which legends to start with before spilling them all to her. He told her about spirit warriors and Taha Aki. The stories fascinated Emily, but as soon as he moved into the territory of 'werewolves' and 'imprinting' she felt herself grow more confused.

"I don't mean to be daft, but how does this clarify everything for me?" Sam flinched to Emily's confusion.

Sam barked out in frustration. "You don't understand! The legends, the stories, everything I just told you is true. That's what happened." Emily took that in for a moment before the registration of what he was saying crossed her face. Sam didn't wait for her to guess it. "Emily, I'm a werewolf!" Emily looked anywhere but at him for a long while but when they locked eyes again, she knew he was telling the truth. Though she wanted to yell at him about taking her out here and breaking her cousin's heart, she knew at the center of her being he would never lie to her.

"I believe you, Sam. But what does this have to do with you and Leah, and ending your relationship?" This was the part that left her in never ending confusion.

He dropped his gaze to the forest floor and whispered his words as if confessing a sin. "I'm dangerous. I could hurt her. I love her more than anything in the world, but being what I am, I could hurt her. And with imprinting there would always be the possibility of mentally hurting her. I had to break up with her to keep her safe. Now that I've imprinted on one of her close friends, I don't know what to do and how to protect her."

Emily felt her heart break when he mentioned imprinting on Leah's friend. She told herself she frowned for Leah's sake but part of her knew that wasn't it.

Her next questions were asked slowly. "How are you dangerous? Did you imprint on Kim?" He raised his eyebrows at the second question.

"If I get angry or upset I could phase and turn into a giant wolf. I could hurt someone I love. I could kill them. And no, I didn't imprint on Kim. I- I imprinted..." He paused to take a deep breath and clear his throat. "I imprinted on you, Emily."

Emily sucked in a deep breath, not able to concentrate. Her best friend/cousin's ex boyfriend had imprinted on her, making her his soulmate. Her eyes pricked with tears. This would surely tear Leah apart even further. As Emily's mind raised through many thoughts surrounded by Leah and how much she would hate her, she couldn't deny that there was something in the air between her and Sam. She felt safe when he was around. When she made this realization, she looked up into his eyes just in time to see something flash across them.

"Emily? Emily, what rez did you say you came from?" His eyes raked her face and her eyebrows knitted together.

"I didn't."

"Please say it isn't the Makah Rez." His eyes were pleading but she knew she couldn't lie to him.

"After everything you just told me, I am not about to lie to you..." There was a slight tremor shaking Sam's body. Emily reached out to put a hand on his bicep to try and comfort him.

"You're Leah's cousin." It wasn't a question, but Emily still averted her eyes and nodded in confirmation. Maybe if she hadn't have turned away she would have been able to react faster. When his shaking intensified and the air seemed to morph around them, she couldn't think fast enough to react.

A searing hot pain traveled down the right side of her body as she locked eyes with a huge black wolf. The rational part of her brain was telling her to be afraid, but there was another more dominant part that was noting the agonized howling of the wolf and how its eyes were the same shade as Sam's. She didn't even register that she should be thankful to have held on to her surroundings as long as she did, instead, she whimpered and reached towards the wolf, "Sam..." She whispered before blackness covered everything and the pain disappeared.