Embracing The Shadows (Shadow Series #5)

23 - Consequences

The engine of the jeep shut off as the headlights beaned off the concrete wall and metal bars of the parking lot. No one uttered a word as the doors creaked open for Stiles and Lydia to climb out. The passenger door slammed shut behind Lydia knowing Stiles would move his seat forward to allow Isaac and myself from the backseat. I watched in silence when Stiles moved his seat forward to give us room to crawl out between the small space.

Isaac maneuvered his long legs out of the tight space of the jeep while I glanced over my shoulder, peering at the back of Lydia's strawberry blonde hair through the back window. I climbed out of the backseat and used Stiles' shoulder to help myself jump down to the asphalt.

Goosebumps rose on my skin from the chilly temperature. The leather jacket provided enough warmth to stop me from shivering in the cool air, yet I still felt cold enough to wish I wore another layer.

My head bobbed toward the looming, dark building of Eichen House to the right. "Can you give us a minute?" I dropped my voice to a low whisper, slyly glancing in Lydia's direction, afraid of her overhearing.

Stiles remained silent and looked between the two of us with his walnut colored eyes. The two of us were unable to discuss how the other was holding up after last night with Lydia in the car. This was our only opportunity before we were thrown back into the chaos of the pack's lives.

"Don't be too long or she'll get suspicious." Isaac pressed a quick kiss to my temple before he sidestepped around me and advanced toward Lydia. He gently nudged her shoulder with the back of his hand and gestured to Kira and Scott by the front gate further down.

They wandered away from the jeep without glancing back at the two of us. I waited a few seconds before I whirled back around to face Stiles, heart aching for the masked signs of distress written on his face.

"How are you holding up?" I softly asked him.

Stiles lightly shook his head and placed his left hand on the door to close it with a small push. He peered at the ground by our shoes with a sigh escaping from his lips. "What are we going to do, Clara?"

The hopelessness laced within the defeated question from my best friend was enough for my heart to shatter. The lump within the base of my throat grew more prominent and my shoulder sunk even more from the weight of his words. There was no one else around to force him to bury the fear he felt inside about Donovan's demise. Stiles was fully terrified and I couldn't blame him in the slightest.

The pack was known for going outside of the law to fight the supernatural, but this was a different scenario. We acted in a moment of self defense last night and, unfortunately, the actions resulted in Donovan's death.

A Protector's one and only job was to protect their loved ones and innocent people who couldn't defend themselves. That was their only job and I failed the task. Death was a rare occurrence for the pack, only happening to our pack members instead of the ones we fought against because we didn't believe in killing people.

My body closed the small gap between us before my brain could process the simple action. I wrapped my arms around Stiles' neck and hugged him as tightly as I could. He melted into my warm and comforting embrace, snaking his own arms around my torso.

"We're going to get through this," I promised him with every fiber of my being.

The ranging of consequences to follow the death of Donovan would be nothing against the things I would do to protect my best friend. Stiles' refusal to allow me to take the fall for the crime was only the beginning. Nothing would prevent me from protecting Stiles.

"I'm going to protect you, Stiles," I reassured him with another tight squeeze with my chin resting on top of my bicep and his shoulder. "I don't— I don't know what happened to his body, but no matter what's to come, no one will know we were involved."