Chapter Twenty Six: Party Guessed (Part 1)
Chapter Song: Buzzcut Season by Lorde
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Everything felt unusually peaceful as I opened my eyes. I scanned my surroundings, finding myself in the backyard of a large brick house. Pink balloons and twinkling lights were tied up along the columns while half drank wine glasses littered the tales and chairs. I took a step forward, my black heels kicking an empty plastic glass in front of me. Where was everyone?
"Hello?" I called. Silence was my only answer. My eyes wandered, realizing that the familiar feel of the backyard was all too real. "Scott? Stiles?" I called.
The quiet noise of bubbling caught my attention, my eyes drifting over to the illuminated pool to find the water gurgling. MI kneeled down to the ground, my knees scraping against the stone pavers. The bubbling slowly moved slower to the pools edge—closer to me—before stopping. My eyes squinted, trying to make out a colorful object hovering in the water. I leaned in closer, realizing it was a tangle of purple flowers suspended in the water. They soon turned into nothing but a cloud of purple until they morphed into a vision of Jackson's face. His beady blue eyes glared right into mine.
"Help me." He pleaded. My brows formed a tight line, why was Jackson under there? I reached my hand out, grazing the crystal clear waters surface. Just as the tips of my fingers broke the surface, a green, scaly hand shot out and engulfed my wrist.
And with that, a blood curdling scream ripped from my lungs.
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My eyes quickly shot opened, a quiet gasp escaping my mouth as I awoke. Immediately, my brows knitted together as I stared up at a used metal ceiling.
This wasn't my room.
I slowly sat up, my hands propping me as I looked around the room. My confusion deepened as I realized I found myself in one of Derek's train carts. I was sprawled out on one of the seats in the back. Had I fallen asleep here?
A tugging at my left hand caught my attention. It moved from propping up my aching body to in front of my vision where I was surprised to find a white bandage wrapped tightly around the palm. My brows furrowed once more. Using my good hand, I quickly began unraveling the bandage. My paced slowed once skin began showing, and finally the bandage dropped into my lap. The skin of my palm was red and blistered. Burned. Except, it was already half way healed.
"Care to explain that?" My head lurched up to see Derek standing at the front of the train cart. I shouldn't have been surprised for him to pop out of no where. Instinctively, I closed up my injured hand.
"I was hoping to ask you the same thing." I admitted, my throat dry. A silence overcame us. I swung my legs over the side of the long bench.
"What are you not telling me?" He asked. Taken aback by the question, I looked at the Alpha with perplexity. This day was getting stranger than my dreams.
"What?" I asked, shaking my head in confusion as I couldn't figure out what Derek was attempting to imply.
"Your hand? It's a burn. From wolfsbane." He stated, his voice a fraction louder than before. All I could do was stare at him. My eyes narrowed, my head shaking as I attempted to form words. "What are you not telling me?"
"What? Nothing." I shook my head again.
"Peter put his claws into you, did something happen you didn't tell me?" Derek stepped forward, his body tense and defensive. My brows rose, astonished.
"If you're implying that I'm a werewolf, try again." I dryly suggested.
"I'm implying that wasn't normal. I'm trying to figure out why you were affected."
"If I knew, I'd tell you. I'm not lying to you, Derek." I swallowed again. My eyes fell to the floor, remembering how I'd come in contact with the wolfsbane. My body tensed as I realized what had happened. My head whipped up to look at Derek, fearful for what he'd reply. "Where's my brother?"
"Relax. He's in the next cart over. He's okay." I exhaled a breath of relief, thankful that Scott hadn't been harmed. I ran a hand over my face.
"What happened?" I finally asked. Derek sharply inhaled, crossing his arms over his chest. His teeth gritted together, hesitating to speak. "Derek, how do you expect me to tell you when things happen when you can't do the same?"
"Argents." He admitted.
"Why would Chris go after Scott—" Derek shook his head.
"The woman." He revealed. "The mother." I pressed my hand against my lips, dragging it down.
"Victoria tried to kill Scott?" I repeated in disbelief. "I don't get it. That's not part of their code."
"As if Argent's haven't deviated from the code before." Derek scoffed.
"Great. Let's just add it to the growing list of problems we need to fix." I sighed, standing up and making my way towards the front of the car.
"Our biggest problem right now is Jackson."
"What about the full moon coming up?" I retorted, turning around to look at Derek. He swallowed hard, silently knowing it was another pending issue.
"We need to focus on Jackson." He repeated as we exited the car.
"I agree." I looked up to see Scott standing in front of us, his hand behind his neck as he cracked it. Relief washed over me as I scanned him over, noting he was still in one piece and very much alive.
"None of this is working." Derek admitted, brushing past me and walking across the station. Scott and I quickly followed at his heels.
"What are you saying then?" Scott asked.
"I'm saying we need a new plan, because next time, one of us is going to be too hurt to heal." Derek explained. The three of us entered a poorly lit cart where Derek finally took a seat. Scott groaned.
"I get it. We can't save Jackson."
"We can't seem to kill him either." Derek leaned forward, lacing his hands together. His jaw squared as he pensively thought. "I've seen a lot of things. I've never seen anything like this. Every new moon is just going to make him stronger."
"So how do we stop him?" Scott asked.
"I don't know." Derek sadly laughed, feeling utterly defeated. "I don't even know if we can."
"There's got to be something we haven't tried." I offered. Derek shook his head.
"Maybe we should just let the Argent's handle it." Scott offered.
"I'm the one who turned him. It's my fault." Derek gravely admitted.
"Yeah, but you didn't turn him into this. I mean, this happened because of something in his past, right?"
"That's a legend in a book, it's not that simple." Derek snapped.
"What do you mean? What are you not telling me?" Scott asked. Derek narrowed his eyes.
"Why do you think I'm always keeping something from you?" I looked to Derek in disbelief, wondering if the question had really left his mouth.
"Because you do." I scoffed
"You always keep something from us!" Scott cried unanimously with me.
"Do I have to bring up the prime example of you biting Jackson in the first place?" I reminded.
"Well maybe I do it to protect both of you." Derek countered, swallowing back anger.
"Doesn't being part of your pack mean no more secrets?" Scott asked, almost hurt. Derek looked down to his hands.
"Go home, Scott. Sleep. Heal. Make sure your friends are safe...because the full moons coming. And with the way things are going, I've got a feeling it's going to be a rough one." Derek sighed, refusing to look at us. Scott, looking more disappointed than anything, looked to me and motioned his head towards the door. Stuffing his hands in the pocket of his dirty, red jacket, he turned on his heel and walked first out of the train cart. I trailed right behind him, stopping in the doorway. I licked my lips, pursing them for a moment before turning around. My hand grasped the cold metal of the vertical standing pole.
"Listen, Derek. Biting him may have been your responsibility, but this...this isn't your fault. You can't always take on the world." I stated. Not bothering to wait for a reply, I exited the train cart and caught up with Scott so we could finally go home.
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My heels clicked against the cement pavers as I walked through Lydia Martin's empty backyard in search of any signs of life. The backyard party had been deserted. I sauntered over to the home, sliding the glass door open and stepping inside.
Within a blink, I found myself transported from the luxurious Martin home to the inside of a dimly lit, dirty cell. My brows furrowed, peaking out the bars of the cell to realize I was in the police station. At first glance, it seemed as if holding cell and the room were empty. But a quiet crying lingered in the air. My hands grabbed the metal bars as I scanned the room.
"Hello?" My voice echoed. The once empty room was now occupied. A brunette stood backed against one of the walls, her head buried inside her hands as she sobbed.
"Allison?" I realized. My hands pressed against the cell bars once more. "Allison, what's wrong?" She failed to answer, she failed to even acknowledge me. "Allison, talk to me." I pleaded.
"How could you?" She spoke up, looking up to meet my gaze. Her eyes were scarlet red and puffy. Mascara was smeared down her face.
"What?"
"How could you? You traitor." Allison cried. I pressed hard against the bars and began to shake them.
"Allison, let me out. Let me help you." I urged.
"No, no, no." She cried. "You traitor. You're just as bad as the rest of them. You're a murderer." She began to back up, her arm out as a caution for me to stay far, far away from her.
"Allison, wait! Wait! Come back!" I yelled, my hands becoming raw from banging against the metal. Terrified and blinded by tears, Allison rushed away from the room. "Allison!" I yelled.
I shot up from bed, my lungs gasping for air. I ran a hand over my face, wiping away beads of sweat. My gasps for air turned into shaky breaths as I lousily attempted to control my breathing. In and out, I silently chanted. I looked over to the alarm clock on my night table, the bright red letters lighting up the dark room. It was half past two. I let out a hefty breath before slamming myself back down into my pillows.
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With the Kanima craziness going on, I had completely forgotten about spring break. Two days had gone by and, thankfully, they'd somehow been Kanima free. I'd hoped to spend break at home, catching up on much needed rest, but I had been guilt tripped into going out with Lydia. It was Lydia's birthday, the self proclaimed best day of the year according to her. And with all that she'd been going through lately, I felt it was only appropriate to make her proclaimed fantasy day a reality.
"I'm so glad they just got their stock in. What a successful trip." Lydia mused as she pulled multiple Macy's bags from the trunk of her Beatle. They contained several dresses she managed to score on sale, including a little black dress I managed to grab for her party tonight. "You're going to look super hot. But not as hot as me." She giggled, handing me the bag containing my dress.
"Out do the birthday girl? Never." I chuckled. The two of us walked up Allison's driveway for Chris Argent to meet us at the door.
"Afternoon Mr. Argent." Lydia gleamed.
"Girls." He nodded his head, his eyes lingering over me for a moment to long. "Allison's in her room." He informed.
"Perfect!" Lydia squealed, her voice filled with more liveliness than Chris was in the mood for. With bags in hands, the two of us ventured up the stairs of the Argent home. The entire time, I could feel Chris' eyes burrowing hard into my back. I prayed I was just being paranoid, but with a target on Derek's back and my brother being the other original werewolf in town, I was not on his good side. Barging into Allison's room, Lydia and I found her at her desk writing in a journal.
"Clear your schedule!" Lydia rang. "This could take a while." Allison quietly laughed, following Lydia and I over to her bed.
"How many outfits do you plan on wearing tonight?" She wondered.
"Enough to take three hours in the dress department." I commented.
"It's my birthday party! I'm thinking host dress, evening dress, then, hmm, after-hours casual." She winked, displaying each dress by pressing them up to her petite body.
"I noticed you didn't send out any invites." Allison mentioned. My eyes met Allison's and I began shaking my head, silently urging her to drop the subject.
"It's the biggest party of the year, Allison. Everyone knows."
"I was wondering if, you know, maybe this year things might be different."
"Why would things be different?"
"Things have been off lately." Allison awkwardly chuckled. "Things and people. Like Jackson." I threw my head back, silently groaning. Lydia was stubborn, and Allison commenting on this wouldn't go over well. The room grew uncomfortably silent as Lydia ominously looked up to our brunette friend.
"What do you care about Jackson?" She defensively questioned, her head cocked as she stared down Allison.
"Do you know if he's coming tonight?" Allison asked.
"Everyone's coming." Lydia blankly stated. Lydia quickly went back to the pile of new clothes, informing Allison of what brands they were and which ones were best for her.
"I like this one." Allison piped up, grabbing the black fabric of the short, black dress.
Nuh-uh." I rang as I moved from standing beside Lydia to over by Allison. "Paws off, that one's mine."
"Is she okay?" Allison whispered to me.
"She was fine the last few hours, I don't know what happened." I quietly replied while Lydia continued to talk about the dresses.
"You don't think it has anything to do with the full mo-" A knock at the door caught our attention. Victoria Argent stood in the doorway, a light smile on her lips. My face paled as I stared at the red headed mother. I forced a meek smile to my lips, but found Victoria avoiding my gaze.
"Mrs. Argent." Lydia greeted. "What do you think of this one?" She asked, pressing a blue strapless dress to her body.
"It's lovely...Allison, uh, can I grab you for a moment to talk? Just the two of us?" Victoria requested. It was more than obvious something was off. She seemed nervous, and the beads of sweat on her hairline just about confirmed my theory.
"Um, can we do it later?" Allison asked.
"Actually, to be honest, sooner would be better." Victoria subconsciously began rubbing her shoulder. I wondered if Derek injured her in the fight.
"Parties at ten." Lydia happily announced.
"Will you be around before then?" Victoria asked.
"I think so." Allison replied, hardly listening.
"You think so?" Victoria gave a forced smile.
"I don't know." Allison exasperated. Lydia began handing Allison dresses, mumbling that it would look good on her. "You think so? No, that's too much." Allison requested with a giggle. I grabbed my dress from the pile of clothes, discreetly watching Victoria exit the room, her body language nervous and scared.
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"This is a party, not a club!" Scott cried as he plopped himself onto my bed. Finishing the last curl of my hair, I unplugged and placed the curling iron back on my dresser.
"It's a dress, Scott." I rolled my eyes, subconsciously readjusting the thin straps of the short black dress I wore. Scott picked up one of the strappy heels I had laying out beside my bed and eyed them with curiosity. "Would you like to wear them?" I asked with a raised brow.
"Ugh." Scott groaned, tossing the shoe at me.
"Hey, jackass!" I cried. I grabbed the curling wand and pointing it at him. "I am not afraid to use this."
"I'm shaking." Scott dryly replied with the roll of his eyes. "Hey, what did you do to your hand?" He asked, noticing the mark on my palm. I quickly coiled up my left hand, hiding the remaining evident of the wolfsbane burn. It was nothing but a fading red now.
"I burned it a few days ago." Technically it wasn't a lie.
"You're the clumsiest person I've ever met." Scott shrugged off, not detecting the blip in my heartbeat.
"Post wolf powers have done wonders on you. I take second place behind you a few months, buddy."
"Whatever." Scott dramatically rolled his eyes again.
"Listen, I've got to go pick up a birthday card for Lydia." I mentioned. "Want me to bring you back anything? Maybe some Xanax for tonight? Some industrial strength handcuffs?"
"Hayley, nothing's going to happen. I can control the shift." Scott's promising words disagreed with the gnawing feeling sitting in the pit of my stomach. Tonight was the full moon, and nothing good ever happened on full moons.
"If you say so." I warily sighed, grabbing the black leather jacket resting on my bed and throwing it on.
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Coming to a werewolf lair on the night of a full moon with three brand new wolves was one of my more moronic ideas. I thought coming to see Derek would be smart, but now I began to feel utterly stupid. Although the sun had set, the moon wasn't due to rise for another hour and a half. I couldn't help but wonder if the Beta's had been chained up yet, and if they were feeling the affects.
The sound of my heels clicking against the concrete floor echoed throughout the train depot, alerting the wolves of my presence. Derek emerged from one of the train carts where I could hear the betas quietly talking from. Derek's stern expression faltered, almost as if he was surprised to see me.
"What are you doing?" He wondered.
"Sorry, I know this probably isn't the best time."
"It's fine." He dismissed flatly. I looked past him and tried to see through the dirty train car windows. The Beta's were too busy preparing to be listening in on our conversation. I came here for one reason, but another question had been plaguing my mind all day.
"What happened the other night?" I hesitantly asked. Derek went to open his mouth, wondering why I was asking a question I already knew the answer to. "With you—with Allison's mom." I could see Derek grow stiff. "I was at their house—"
"You were at the Argent's?" Derek rose a brow.
"Not my brightest idea and not the point."
"She tried killing your brother the other night. Yeah, I'd say so." He scoffed.
"Did something happen? There was something off. She seemed...scared."
"Maybe she knows you know." Derek suggested, crossing his arms tightly over his chest.
"Derek." I sternly looked at the Alpha. His exterior quickly broke; he sighed and averted his gaze from me.
"She attacked me." He admitted, quickly pausing. He licked his lips, reluctant to continue. My brows knitted into a tight line.
"What did you do?"
"The only thing I could do." He gravely replied. The tense expression plastered on my face and the tension in my shoulders fell.
"You bit her?" I realized. Derek's misty green eyes averted my gaze once more. Did Allison know? She couldn't have. "What are they going to do to her?"
"I don't know." His jaw tensed. Victoria had no time left. Tonight was a full moon and she would turn. Would Gerard and Chris kill her? Did Chris have the heart to kill his own wife? I swallowed hard, sighing as I let out a breath. My mind swirled, not wanting to comprehend the matriarch Argent's fate. "That's not the only reason I came here." I admitted. "I need a favor."
"Depends what it is."
"Wolfsbane. Do you have any?" Derek looked at me, hesitating to ask why. "It's for Scott. For tonight...just in case."
"He said he had the shift under control."
"And he does. I think. But on the off chance he doesn't, I don't want him attacking a crowd full of people. I just need enough to weaken him if, you know..." Derek's eyes quickly scanned me.
"You're going out tonight." Derek realized. I nodded.
"It's Lydia's birthday." Derek nodded before turning around and walking towards the crates where we both once sat just weeks before. It reminded me of how horribly I wanted him to bring up our kiss. A wooden chest sat on top of the crates. He flicked it open, revealing a triple spiral painted into the wood. It was just like the one on his back.
"Here." Derek's voice caught me by surprise and dragged me out of my thoughts. He handed me a small glass vile. Corked inside were tiny purple flowers. "It's enough to weaken him if he comes in contact with it." My head nodded in understanding.
"I appreciate it." I slid the vile into the pocket of my leather jacket. I pursed my lips as the two of us fell into an uncomfortable silence. "I'll see you later then."
"Call me if there's any problems." My nod assured him I would. Just as I began walking, Derek opened his mouth again."Be careful tonight." He urged. I turned around, hoping he'd come out of the night unscathed.
"You too.