him. She ordered him to go back to Leah. It was the only thing he was able to refuse her; he still loved Leah enough that he would not act out a charade with her. That Sam‘s feelings for Leah were in some ways more honorable than her own infuriated Emily. She called him a liar, though she knew she was the one who was lying. She shoved him away from her. Because of Leah, she knew a great deal about Sam; she knew his most vulnerable spot. She used this knowledge, accusing him of being like his father, Joshua, a coward who had run away from his family.
Emily was pleased to see that her insult had struck home; she‘d never seen Sam‘s face angry before. She had just a fraction of a second to enjoy that pettiness. Sam stumbled back from her, suddenly afraid. She intended to push her point; she moved toward him. He raised his hand, warning her away, but she kept on. She didn‘t understand what the shaking meant. Then Sam expanded into his wolf form so quickly that Emily had no time to react. His hand was close to her face; it became a huge claw that slashed her as he tried to get away from her.
The pain and shock sent her into unconsciousness.
The pain and shock sent her into unconsciousness. When she woke, Jared was there. He held her, keeping her warm so that she wouldn‘t go into shock. Though Emily barely knew Jared, his face was as tormented as if he held his own sister. Emily, though disoriented, realized the bond Sam felt for her through his packmate‘s agony. Then Sam was there, in his huge black wolf form. Emily was surprised that there was nothing frightening at all about him. She understood clearly how the accident had happened, and tried to tell him so, but her mouth was injured and Jared discouraged her from talking. Sue arrived, and even though she was in a great deal of pain, Emily was still able to feel mortified; how much Leah‘s mother must hate her! But Sue‘s face was kind and understanding. Emily realized that Sue must understand about imprinting. She wasn‘t judging Emily or Sam. Sue and Paul took Emily to the Neah Bay hospital. Emily went along with the story that she‘d been mauled by a black bear, though she worried that this story would hurt Sam.
She realized that Sam was the one person she wanted with her.
Sedated, Emily was still aware and surprised that Sam did not come to her immediately.
Jared, however, was constantly at her side. This comforted her; she knew she was being watched over. But it was not the same as having Sam there. She realized that Sam was the one person she wanted with her. The next day, when she was more lucid, she asked Jared where Sam was. She was not surprised to hear that Sam was devastated; she had an intuitive sense of how he would react to the accident. She told Jared to send Sam to her.
When Sam entered the room, Emily could see how right she was about his mindset. He looked at her for one long moment, and then knelt at the side of her bed and asked Emily to tell him to kill himself. Emily fully realized in that moment how bound Sam was by her wishes and needs, how little free will he had outside of that, and she pitied him greatly. She told him that what she wanted was for him to forgive himself, as she had already forgiven him. She told him the realization she had the night before.
Emily could feel that being with Sam would be a very easy thing. On the other hand, it would require a very hard thing first — she had to tell Leah. Sam asked her to wait until she was more fully recovered, and Emily agreed, though she knew she was chickening out. Later, she wished she had acted more swiftly. When Emily did call, Leah already knew what she was going to hear. Leah refused to ever forgive her cousin. Emily felt horrible, but she knew there was nothing she could do to make things easier for Leah.
She also loved his pack; she never forgot how Jared had cared for her, and she began to think of them all as her younger brothers.
Emily was surprised by how happy she was with Sam. She‘d never dreamed of such an easy, joyful relationship. She also loved his pack; she never forgot how Jared had cared for her, and she began to think of them all as her younger brothers. Because few of their parents knew about their real lives, Emily took it on herself to care for the boys as much as possible — feeding their immense appetites, finding replacement clothes for them, giving them a place to hang out when they were keeping odd hours. She felt that in some ways, she was preserving the most important Quileute tradition of all.
When Leah joined the pack, it healed her relationship with Emily, on the surface at least.
Emily knew that Leah no longer held her responsible for what had happened, but she also knew that it hurt Leah to be near Emily. Emily did her best to protect Leah from extra pain, and hoped fervently that Leah would find a way to be happy again.
FAMOUS QUOTE
OTHER TRIBE MEMBERS
QUIL ATEARA IV Quil Ateara IV was the son of Old Quil Ateara and Molly Swan. He married Joy Quehpa, and they had a son, Quil Ateara V. As a descendant of the previous werewolf pack through both parents, he passed the shape-shifting gene on to his son. It is also possible that he was Embry Call‘s biological father and passed the chromosome on to him as well. He died before he was thirty years old, when his fishing boat capsized during a big storm.
SARAH BLACK Sarah Black was the granddaughter of Quil Ateara II, the wife of Billy Black, and the mother of Rachel, Rebecca, and Jacob Black. She was a full-time mother and a part-time artist, working mostly with watercolors. She died in a car accident when her daughters were thirteen and her son was nine. She knew the truth about the Quileute wolves, but hoped that her son would never have to live that life.
RACHEL BLACK Rachel is the daughter of Billy and Sarah Black, and the sister of Jacob and Rebecca Black. She and her twin sister had a difficult time dealing with the death of their mother. Rachel left La Push as soon as she was old enough, and rarely returned home to visit. However, when she returned home after graduating from Washington State University with a degree in computer engineering, Paul Lahote imprinted on her. Though she had intended to leave again soon, she was very drawn to Paul. He told her the truth about the Quileute wolves, and so she understood his dilemma. She decided to work from home in La Push until Paul was able to leave with her.
REBECCA BLACK Rebecca is the daughter of Billy and Sarah Black, and the sister of Jacob and Rachel Black. She lives in Hawaii for most of the year with her husband, a professional surfer; they travel frequently for his competitions. Like her mother, Rebecca is an artist, though Rebecca prefers oils. She does not know of the existence of wolves in La Push.
HARRY CLEARWATER Harry Clearwater was the father of Leah and Seth Clearwater. He was a tribal elder and a very good friend of both Billy Black and Charlie Swan, often accompanying them on fishing trips. He was a descendant of the Ateara werewolf line and extended that lineage to his children.
KIM Kim was one of Jared Cameron‘s classmates. She‘d had a secret crush on him for a while, so she was thrilled when he imprinted on her.
