Wisdom's Daughter

1

Tessa Moore sat in the back of a taxi. She'd just arrived in Beacon Hills to visit her cousin and to return to school for the spring semester.

Camp had been a nice break from high school, but she was ready to return to the real world for a little while.

She reached her stop and exited the taxi.

Tessa pulled out her key and unlocked the door. She made her way to her room and dropped her stuff off.

Scott McCall appeared in her doorway and smiled. "Tessa! Hey! Thought I heard you."

Tessa returned his smile and hugged her cousin. "Hey, Scott. Is everything as I left it?"

Scott nodded. "Yeah, nothing out of the ordinary here. Does my mom know you're here?"

"I texted her as soon as I landed, but I guess she's busy."

"She has a shift at the hospital tonight, so-"

A rustling outside caught Tessa's attention and she was instantly on high alert. "Shh!"

Tessa grabbed her Celestial Bronze dagger and Scott grabbed a wooden bat and they made their way outside.

Stiles Stilinski dangled from the roof, causing Scott to scream and Tessa to take a fighting stance, nearly slicing clean through her cousin's best friend.

"Stiles, what the hell are you doing?!" Scott cried.

"You weren't answering your phone," Stiles replied. "Why do you have a bat? Tessa, can you point that thing somewhere else? You could really hurt someone with that."

"We thought you were a predator."

"A pre -- I -- wha -- look, I know it's late, but you gotta hear this. I saw my dad leave 20 minutes ago. Dispatch called. They're bringing in every officer from the Beacon Department, and even State Police."

"Must be pretty serious," Tessa mumbled.

"For what?" Scott asked.

"Two joggers found a body in the woods," Stiles explained.

"A dead body?"

"No, a body of water. Yes, dumbass, a dead body."

Tessa's eyes flicked to her cousin. "You know, sometimes the questions you ask."

Scott shot her a look before asking, "You mean like murdered?"

"Nobody knows yes. Just that it was a girl, probably in her late 20s," Stiles said.

"Hold on, if they found the body, then what are they looking for?"

"That's the best part. They only found half. We're going. That includes you, Tessa."

She crossed her arms. "I was going to study, make sure I was ready for the semester."

"There's a lot more time for that, smartie."

"We're not 12 anymore, Stiles."

Scott let out an annoyed sigh as they reached the Beacon Hills Preserve. "We're seriously doing this?"

"You're the one always bitching that nothing ever happens in this town," Stiles shot back.

"I was trying to get a good night's sleep before practice tomorrow," Scott said.

"Right, 'cause sitting on the bed is such a grueling effort," Stiles replied sarcastically.

"No, because I'm playing this year. In fact, I'm making first line."