REAPING INNOCENCE ◦ STILINSKI [3]

vii.

    Out of the corner of her eye she could see that Raeven's nostrils were flaring. The sight of fresh, warm blood was something she doesn't see very often—and it was enough to have her on edge. Air hissed up Raeven's throat, spitting through her clenched teeth with a low, menacing sound like a swarm of bees. Before the sound was out, her muscles bunched an arched, twisting. A dry, scorching ache in her throat at the sight of blood.

    Carter seemed to gather her bearing enough to try and distract Raeven. But, for she was momentarily preoccupied by the way her body moved. The instant she'd considered standing erect, she was already straight. There was no brief fragment of time in which the action occurred; change was instantaneous, almost as if there was no movement at all. She had gotten faster. She was faster than before.

    She moved slowly toward her doppelgänger—each step taking nearly half a second, each step flowing sinuously like river water weaving over smooth stones—her hand outstretching to her.

    Raeven watched with hunger at the grace of her advance.

    "Raeven?" Carter asked in a low, calming tone, but the worry in her voice layered her name with tension.

    She did not answer immediately, lost as she was in the drying blood on Carter's knuckles. It was the most perfect shade of red, a smell so captivating and sweet that she couldn't imagine anything ever smelling any better, but she could imagine the taste...

    "Raeven...Rae? I'm so sorry, I shouldn't have done that with you here. But you're all right, remember? You've learned control. Everything is fine."

    The dry ache was all she could think about, and the more she thought about it, the more it hurt. Her hand flew up to cup her throat, like she could smother the flames from the outside. The skin of her neck was strange beneath her fingers.

    Raeven swallowed through the pain, slowly backing away from them as her fangs slipped through. "I'm sorry, don't—I've got to go."

    She finally turned away from them before bolting across the courtyard. Carter felt a pang of guilt course through her chest, knowing that if she hadn't let her emotions get the best of her then Raeven wouldn't have needed to flee. The brunette saw the amount of pain her doppelgänger was in—see in her eyes as she stared at the blood. When was the last time she fed? That was also when she began to wonder what Raeven had done after she ran away...

○ ○ ○

    Everyone had already arrived at the Martin Lake House, excluding Scott and Raeven. They were awaiting the arrival of the Alpha, and more importantly, Kira and Liam. While Carter and Stiles were setting up everything in the boat house, Stiles had stumbled across some highly concerning information regarding Liam. Which resulted in the brunette scolding Logan for not telling them.

    A few minutes later, the headlight of Scott's dirt-bike was breaking through the darkness, the boy roaring into the driveway next to the five of them. He parked his bike, pulling his helmet off of his head. His hair was slightly disheveled and his dark eyes were shining.

    "I just talked to Kira. She's on her way. She said it's all going fine." Scott announced, glancing at all oft them.

    "No, it's not that," Stiles muttered, releasing a nervous sigh before approaching Scott. He had uncovered an alarming piece of Liam's life, making the teenagers all grow even more nervous about the full moon. "I have to tell you something. I asked around about Liam. I know why he got kicked out of his last school."