The Unwanted Imprint

Chapter 8

Edward was the first one to realize that Nichole had run off. As soon as the rest of the house was alerted, they started to comb the woods for her, except for Alice, who was fuming at Rosalie. "Nichole has done nothing to you, Rosalie, and you continue to bring her down! Every day that's all that you do! And don't give me any of that 'she's a human' crap. We're all fully aware that she's a human."

"She shouldn't be here with us!" Rosalie insisted. "She doesn't belong here!"

"No, you're just jealous because she has what you don't! We all know how much you want to be human again Rosalie, but that doesn't mean that you get to take all of your anger out on Nichole. She has tried so hard to get you to like her, but you won't even make an attempt! If something happens to her, then it's on you."

Meanwhile, Nichole had walked deep into the woods, so deep that she didn't know which way led out anymore. Not that it mattered. She hoped that the Cullens wouldn't spend too long looking for her. She should have never lived with them to begin with, the only thing that she had done was cause strife in the family. She hadn't meant to, she had tried not to cause them any trouble, but it seemed like trouble was all that she caused.

Nichole walked until she couldn't walk anymore. She collapsed to the ground, her back resting against a fallen tree. Crickets chirped, and the scene might almost be serene if it hadn't been for the situation that Nichole had found herself in. She laid her head against the tree, her eyes starting to slide shut. However, her eyes snapped open once she heard a howl cut through the air.

Carlisle and the others had looked all over for Nichole, but she was nowhere to be found, which could only mean one thing: that Nichole had crossed from their border onto the wolves' side. No one liked it, but they knew that they would have to go to Sam Uley for help.

"How do we know that he's going to help us?" Emmett demanded. They were all gathered back at the house now, Rosalie sullen and quiet as the others talked. "In case you don't remember, he hates us, each one of those dogs do."

"While we may not get along with Sam Uley and his pack, we have to face the fact that Nichole may have wandered onto their borders," Carlisle replied. "And if that's the case, then we can't go over there and search for her."

"Sam Uley might not even talk to you," Edward pointed out. "I would be fairly surprised if he did. What if he doesn't listen?"

Carlisle sighed softly. "If he doesn't, then I'll have no choice but to cross the border. I know that we made a pact with them, but Nichole is my daughter, and if finding her, and finding her safe, means that I have to break the pact, then I'll do it."

"Let's not assume the worst," Jasper spoke up. "Sam may be a werewolf, but he is not a monster. If we tell him that Nichole is in danger, then he would probably help us. But only one or two of us should go, so that he does not seem threatened, and it should be some of the..." he glanced at Emmett. "Some of the not-so-hotheaded ones that go."

"Carlisle, I think that you and Jasper should go," Alice spoke up. "The rest of us can continue combing the woods on our side, just in case we might have missed something."

Needless to say, Sam Uley was not happy to see Carlisle and Jasper. "You know what the treaty states, Cullen. You're on our land."

"I know, and I would not have come here if I wasn't desperate. I have a daughter, a human daughter, and she's lost in the woods. We can't find her anywhere, and we think that she may have crossed onto your borders."

Sam folded his arms across his chest, giving Carlisle a dubious look. "What the hell are you doing with a human?"

"We took her out of a less than satisfactory home life. She may not be a vampire like we are, but she is still one of us, and the only thing that I want to do is make sure that she's safe. We're still looking through the woods on our side of the border, but seeing as how we haven't found her yet, we can only assume that she made her way to your side of the border."

"I'll keep my eye out for her, but I can't make any promises. Why'd she even take off anyway?"

"That's a personal matter, but I will tell you that she ran away because she thought that it would make our lives better, but that isn't the case. Our lives were made better because she came into our lives. I know that you don't hold us in very high regard, Sam, but Nichole is extremely important to us, and we're willing to do anything that it takes to get her back."

"And if I told you that it would take you getting the hell out of Forks in order for me to look for her?"

Carlisle's answer took Sam by surprise. "Then once Nichole was safely with us again, we would leave."

Sam could see that Carlisle cared deeply about this human girl, and he sighed deeply. "I'll do what I can, I'll have Paul and Jared look for her too, they're going out on patrol in a few minutes anyway. But I can't make any promises, Cullen."

"You're trying at least, that's all that I ask, thank you." Carlisle left with Jasper, and Jasper looked at the older man. "Do you think that they're going to find her? Or even try?"

"I think that they're going to at least attempt to look for her. And who knows, maybe this is what's needed to finally bridge the gap between werewolves and vampires."