The Unwanted Imprint

Chapter 30

Surprisingly, most of the pack didn't seem to mind Nichole being there. Really the only ones who seemed to be against it were Paul and Seth's older sister Leah.

"Why the hell are we housing the vamp to be?" Leah demanded as she stormed into the house. Emily had just served Nichole a bowl of piping hot beef soup and a warm roll, both of which Nichole had devoured. Who knew that running from a bunch of vampires could make someone so hungry?

Nichole kept her gaze on her bowl at Leah's words. "Leah, you need to calm down," Sam said in a stern voice. "Nichole is not a vampire yet, and she has very dangerous ones after her, so she's going to remain here for the time being. I know that some of you aren't very happy about it, but for right now, it's the way that things are going to be."

Emily came up behind Nichole, placing her hands on the teenage girl's shoulders. "Nichole has never harmed anyone, and she isn't included in the pact, so there is no reason to be hostile towards her."

"Of course, she's part of the pact!" Leah spat. "She's a Cullen."

"But she isn't a vampire. The pact refers only to the vampires and not any humans that the vampires may have taken in in the meantime."

Nichole glanced between Emily and Leah, she was starting to think that coming here had been a bad idea; she didn't want there to be strife and discord between the two girls because of her. "Um, maybe I should just go." She murmured, and Sam shook his head. "That's not a good idea, Nichole. You're safest here."

"I'm not so sure about that." Jared Cameron walked in. "Paul and I just came back from patrol, and there's like, half a dozen vampires at the border, probably more. None of them belong to the Cullen clan, either."

Leah scoffed. "Only six? Please, I'm sure that we can handle six bloodsuckers."

"Unless they have powers," Nichole said, causing the others to look at her. "You know, powers that normal vampires don't have, like how Edward can hear people's thoughts, or how Alice can see the future."

"It doesn't matter." Leah objected.

"Oh really? And what if they're like Emmett and are super strong? Strong enough to snap your neck while you're in wolf form that it's like breaking a twig? As strong as you guys are, these guys could prove to be stronger, so you can't be getting all cocky. I get that you don't like me, Leah, and I'm not asking you to like me, but what I am asking is that you listen to my advice so that your death isn't on my conscience. I've already had one person die trying to protect me, and I would much rather not have any others die on my behalf."

Leah rolled her eyes. The whole self-sacrifice thing may have worked with everyone else, but it isn't going to work with me."

"Enough," Sam said. "Our mission right now is to keep Nichole safe. Emily is right, Nichole is a human, and she is innocent. Besides that, she's Jacob's imprint, and everyone knows what our rules are regarding imprints. Jared, I want you to stay here with Nichole and Emily, I'm gonna send Jacob this way as well. Everyone else is going to patrol the borders twenty-four seven to make sure that the vampires don't make their way across. Not only do they pose a threat to Nichole, but they also pose a threat to every human living in Forks. Leah, let's go."

Sam left the house with Leah trudging behind him.

"Don't worry, Sam knows what he's doing," Jared said, trying to reassure the girls.

"I hope so." Nichole sighed, and Emily took her hand. "Sam may have a temper at times, but he thinks things through."

"Not to mention that Jacob would go through a hundred vampires if it meant keeping you safe," Jared added. "Hell, you should see him every time that someone mentions your name. It's like his whole face lights up."

Nichole let out a scoff. "I doubt that. He's made it very clear to me that he hates me."

"Don't get me wrong, he's trying to hate you, but it's like with every day that passes, he hates you less and less. That's how it works when you have an imprint, you can't help but care about that person, even if you're trying to hate them with every ounce of your being."

"So he's being forced to love me then."

"Not exactly, I don't think that he ever truly hated you, to begin with, I mean, you guys got along great before he shifted for the first time, right? I think it's more to do with that since you're a Cullen, he feels like he's supposed to hate you, you know? Personally, I think that it's all a little bit ridiculous. I mean, your family has never hurt a Forks resident, and they've never started any kind of trouble, so I don't see what the big deal is."

Nichole smiled softly. "At least I've got one wolf on my side. It seems like you guys either hate me or want to be my friend."

Jared chuckled a bit. "Actually, it's only Paul and Leah that hate you, the rest of us think that you're actually pretty cool, you have Seth to thank for that."

"Remind me to thank him if I get out of this whole mess alive."

"Yeah...it would be nice if your sister could predict how all of this would turn out."

Nichole shook her head. "Unfortunately, she can't see the future when it comes to wolves. And even if she could, the future that she sees could change in a split second. According to her, one decision could change everything that she sees."

"That's-" Jared suddenly stopped talking. "A vamp is near, I can smell them. They're by the front door."

Jared changed into his wolf form as Nichole watched the knob of the front door turn, and the door swung open. Jared sprang forward, teeth bared, and Nichole's eyes widened when she saw who the intruder was. "Jared, wait!"