𝐏𝐑𝐈𝐌𝐀𝐋, derek hale

𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐧𝐞

The sound had been horrifying, the dying fire licking the bodies, the flames crackling with every motion.

Stomach churning at the thought, Aspen brushed a hand along Isla's hair, adjusting her arms as she glanced at Derek.

Having finally opened the door, pushing stacked up, furniture out the way, Derek had turned to glance back at her.

Aspen didn't hide the frustration she was experiencing as she moved to stand beside Derek, who silently reached for her free hand.

Ensuring she was safely holding the sleeping baby in her arms, Aspen reluctantly allowed Derek to intertwine their fingers before he pulled her into the house.

Almost immediately, Aspen's hand broke from his, cupping her mouth to smother the throaty cough that escaped.

Eyes squinting, Aspen's vision slowly adapted to the dark interior of the house as the ash she inhaled was swiftly barked out.

"You can't be serious." Aspen deadpanned, shaking her head as she fixed Derek with a stern glare.

Her husband was barely fazed, shrugging off his leather jacket and throwing it across the room, ensuring it would land on the crisp wooden chair at the far end of the room.

As soon as the heavy material bared its weight on the frail chair, the legs collapsed with an echoing crash.

A pile of broken wood and ash laid where the chair had once stood, Derek's leather jacket on top.

Almost sheepishly, Derek shrugged. "It's only for a couple of days, as soon as we find Laura we'll go back to New York, I promise. We need to keep a low profile while we're here and this is the way we do it." Derek reasoned, tone calm as Aspen fixed him with a stern look before she eventually nodded.

◝.*･ﾟ

               𝐓𝐡𝐫𝐞𝐞 𝐝𝐚𝐲𝐬 𝐡𝐚𝐝 𝐩𝐚𝐬𝐬𝐞𝐝 𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐞𝐜𝐥𝐮𝐝𝐞𝐝 𝐟𝐚𝐦𝐢𝐥𝐲 𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐩𝐩𝐞𝐝 𝐟𝐨𝐨𝐭 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐨 𝐁𝐞𝐚𝐜𝐨𝐧 𝐇𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐬, reopening closed, painful wounds they'd fought so hard to keep stitched up.

While Derek had originally insisted they'd be staying in the empty Hale house for no more than a couple of days, Aspen was beginning to highly doubt that.

The news that Laura was in fact dead had rocked the family, especially Derek. His last living direct relative, his older sister, had been murdered in cold blood.

Her body had been torn apart and now it seemed a new alpha was on the rise. Whoever this alpha was, was a threat to their family, to their small pack.

Swallowing at the thought, Aspen ignored the sickly feeling of nerves that churned in the pit of her stomach. Being scared, fearing for her pack's safety, for her own safety, wasn't a feeling she was accustomed to.

She didn't want to stay in Beacon Hills, knowing a new alpha, and the murderer of Laura was at large.

An alpha would easily overpower herself and Derek in an ordinary fight, but if it was in-regards-to protecting Isla, Aspen was certain the outcome would be different. Derek had always called her a protective 'she-wolf', Isla was her anchor, her light.

The sound of a piercing howl, one that she certainly didn't recognised, caused her body to tense up.

Catching sight of the full moon reflecting through the remaining glass in the downstairs window, Aspen's throat tightened.