CHAPTER TWENTY FOUR:
CODE BREAKER, PART TWO
Brooke didn't get a chance to recover before her hand was ripped from Stiles' and they were thrown into an empty hospital room. Stiles and Jackson fell onto the empty bed, but Brooke managed to balance herself before completely falling. She rubbed her shoulder and glared at the hunter that dragged her.
"Let's try this again," Chris Argent said, locking the doors to the room. "Where is Scott McCall?"
The three teens remained silent. Chris Argent rolled his eyes before roughly grabbing Stiles and slamming him against a cabinet. Brooke went to intervene but a hand grasped her injured shoulder, causing her to wince and fall backwards.
"Let me ask you a question, Stiles. Have you ever seen a rabid dog?" Chris Argent asked.
"No, but I could put it on my to do list if you let me go," Stiles retorted. His eyes flickered to Brooke as she rubbed her shoulder. Chris Argent noticed this exchanged and signaled one of the hunters. He grabbed Brooke by the shoulder and pressed down on it, forcing her to fall to her knees in pain. "Stop it!"
"I have seen a rabid dog," Chris Argent said. "And the only thing I can compare it to is seeing a friend of mine turn on a full moon."
"Your friend must have terrible self-control," Brooke quipped from the ground. The pressure on her shoulder increased.
"Yeah, and he tried to kill me," Chris Argent continued his story. "I was forced to put a bullet in his head. The whole while that he lay there dying, he was still trying to claw his way toward me. Still trying to kill me like it was the most important thing he could do with his last breath. Can you imagine that?"
"No," Stiles said. His eyes flickered to Brooke again. "And it sounds like you need to be a little more selective—"
"Did Scott try kill you on the full moon?" Argent interrupted. "Did you have to lock him up?"
"Yeah, I did," Stiles responded. "I had to handcuff him to a radiator. Why? Would you prefer I locked him in a basement and burn the whole house down around him?"
"Stiles!" Brooke said in horror.
Chris chuckled and moved away from Stiles, the hunter behind Brooke letting her go as well. She stood up slowly as Chris Argent kept talking. "I hate to dispel a popular rumor, Stiles, but we never did that."
Brooke laughed out loud, gaining Argent's attention. "Right, because no one ever breaks 'the code'."
"Never," Chris denied.
"What if someone does?" Stiles asked.
Chris looked back and forth between the two. "Someone like who?"
Stiles stayed silent, too scared to tell Argent the truth. Brooke took a deep breath, "Your sister."
*****
"I'll meet you there," Brooke said as the three teens walked out of the hospital.
"Wait, what?" Stiles asked. Jackson looked at her in confusion as well.
"I can run faster than you can drive, Stiles," she said. She could tell he was about to argue, so she kept talking. "I don't have time to argue Stiles. Scott and Derek are in danger, okay? Just... find a weapon and meet me there."
"Okay," Stiles said, surprising not only Brooke but himself as well. Brooke squeezed his hand thankfully, and reached up to kiss the corner of his mouth.
"Stay safe," she said to them before turning and disappearing into the darkness.
Brooke ran faster than she ever had before, her legs burning and lungs filling with air way too quickly. She quickly reached the edge of the preserve and pushed herself to go faster. She ran through the trees, ignoring the edges of branches that scratched her, knowing she'd heal within seconds. It was only a few minutes later that she arrived at the Hale House. Derek and Scott were limping away from the house, moving at a slow but steady pace.
"Derek!" Brooke called, quickly closing the distance between them and wrapping herself around him in a tight hug. He hugged her back briefly and then pulled away, pulling out leaves that had gotten stuck in her hair.
He didn't get a chance to say anything, an arrow flying in between them and hitting him in the chest. Brooke let out a shriek and took a step back, trying to find the source. Another arrow quickly came flying, this time striking Derek in the leg.
"Flash bolt," she heard a woman's voice say. She quickly ducked, covering her eyes as she fell onto Derek's body. Once the arrow had exploded, Brooke quickly pulled the arrows out of Derek's body, and pulled him up.
"Come on, Scott," she said, racing towards the younger werewolf with Derek's arm wrapped around her shoulder. She pulled them towards the Hale house, but ended up collapsing with both of their weights on her. She pushed Scott further as Derek fell to the ground. "Scott, go!"
She flipped Derek over, pressing her hands on his wounds and doing her best to heal him. Allison walked right past them and closer to Scott, making Brooke do a double take as to who it actually was.
"I don't believe you," Allison said to Scott.
"Allison, he's telling the truth," Brooke said from her crouched position. She had successfully healed one of Derek's wounds and was waiting for her own to heal before moving on.
Allison let out a laugh. "How am I supposed to trust you, Brooke? You knew about this the whole time and didn't say anything."
Brooke gulped. "It wasn't my secret to tell."
Allison didn't respond, she just looked over again at Scott.
"Now shoot him," Kate Argent said she strutted over. "Before I have to shoot him myself."
"You said we were just going to catch them," Allison said, clearly uncomfortable.
"We did that," Kate said. "Now we're gonna kill them."
Kate raised her gun and shot Derek in the stomach, making Brooke let out a yelp. She stood to attack Kate, but the huntress raised the end of her gun and knocked Brooke across the head in one swift movement.
"See? Not that hard," Kate said. Allison let out a small scream at both actions. Brooke fell back against the ground, bringing a hand to her bleeding head. Kate pushed Allison back, causing her to fall next to Brooke. Kate trained her gun on Scott. "I do love those brown eyes."
"Kate!" a voice called across the hearing. Brooke let out a sign in relief when she saw it was Chris Argent. "I know what you did. Put the gun down."
Brooke took advantage of the distraction, crawling over to Derek and digging out the bullet from his abdomen.
"I did what I was told to do," Kate said defiantly.
"No one asked you to murder innocent people," Chris said. His eyes flickered to Brooke momentarily. "There were children in that house, ones that were human. Look at what you're doing now—you're holding a gun at a sixteen-year-old boy with no proof he spilled human blood!"
The forest was silent as Chris argent took a few steps closer to his sister. "We go by the code: Nous Chassons Ceux Qui Nous Chassent."
"We hunt those who hunt us," Allison translated, realization covering her face. Kate's finger tightened on the trigger of the gun. Chris told her to put her gun down, shooting his own right over her shoulder as a warning. She slowly lowered her gun and Brooke took a deep breath, turning back to Derek's wounds.
The door to the Hale house suddenly creaked open. Brooke made eye contact with Chris Argent as a warning, and he warned his daughter to get back. Brooke leaned over quickly, urging Derek to get up and hide until he healed. He reluctantly did so, leaving Brooke to turn and face the door along with everyone else.
"What is it?" Allison asked, fear evident in her voice. Brooked grabbed one of the brunette's wrist, pulling her behind her.
"It's the Alpha," Scott answered. He bared his canines and his claws, eyes glowing gold. Allison pulled out her bow and arrow, ready to shoot.
Peter darted out of the burnt home in his wolf form, running circles around the group, making them turn quickly to try and keep up with him. He came close to the group, knocking out Chris Argent first. Then, he knocked Allison to the ground and Scott shortly after, leaving only Brooke and Kate standing.
"Come on!" The huntress yelled, trying to taunt the large werewolf. "Come on!"
Peter instantly appeared beside her, only in human form. He grabbed the hand that was holding the gun, breaking her wrist and forcing her to drop the weapon. He quickly threw Kate onto the porch of the house, dragging her inside by the throat.
"No!" Allison yelled, racing after them.
Brooke tried to stop her, but Allison shook her off quickly. Brooke walked over to Scott, helping him up and making sure he was okay.
The sound of Allison's scream gained their attention and the two quickly took off inside. Kate was lying dead on the floor, her neck bleeding profusely. Brooke didn't linger on it too long, not feeling bad since Kate was the one who had murdered half of her family.
"That apology didn't sound very sincere," Peter said. He took a menacing step towards Allison, causing her took take a fearful two back. Brooke placed herself in front of Allison, and Scott immediately jumped between them, growling at Peter as a warning. Derek appeared on their other side, already fully in wolf form.
"We should go," Brooke said to Allison, pulling her harshly by the arm as the wolves lunged at each other. The two girls ran outside, finding Chris Argent still lying on the ground. Allison immediately ran to her dad, trying to shake him awake.
Scott came flying out of a window, glass shattering all around him. The alpha came running after him, pulling him up the neck.
"Peter!" Brooke yelled. "You got your revenge. Just let him go, just give up!"
Peter dropped Scott harshly to the ground, walking towards his niece. Brooke stood her ground, unwilling to show how scared she truly was.
The sound of a car interrupted the tense air surrounding them, and Brooke let out a laugh in relief as she saw Jackson and Stiles climb out of the Porsche. Stiles flung a beaker full of liquid at the Alpha, but he just caught it with ease.
Scott called Allison's name, throwing her bow towards her. She quickly pulled an arrow out of the sheath on her back and took aim. The arrow broke the beaker and immediately engulfed Peter in flames. Jackson threw the other Molotov cocktail, making the fire grow. Peter began to stumble away from them, too concerned with the fire that was burning his body.
Peter transformed into his human self and let out a gasp for air before collapsing to the ground. Everyone collected their breath as fire crackled around Peter's body. Stiles ran to Brooke, wrapping his arms around her to make sure she was safe.
"You're okay?" he asked her.
Brooke nodded her head. "Yeah, yeah I'm fine. Did you come up with that idea on your own?" she asked, referencing the Molotov cocktails.
"Yeah," Stiles nodded his head, trying his hardest to hide the blush that was forming on his face from the look of amazement the Brooke was giving him.
Brooke went to respond, but got distracted as Derek walked past them to Peter's gasping form.
"Wait!" Scott called out, running towards the two. "You said the cure comes from the one who bit you."
Brooke stepped out of Stiles' hold, walking towards the young beta and tilting her head. Derek did what?
"Derek?" Brooke asked, wanting him to clarify that he didn't actually tell Scott that.
"If you do this, I'm dead," Scott practically begged. "Her father, her family. What am I supposed to do?
Brooke took another step forward. "He lied to you, Scott, there is no cure." Her voice was clearly full of disdain towards her cousin, disapproval covering her face.
Derek raised his right hand, sharp claws extending from the tips of his fingers. Scott begged him to wait, but Derek didn't listen. He brought his sharp claws flying across Peter's neck, slicing apart what was left of his body.
Brook shook her head in disbelief. Was this really happening? Was Derek just as power hungry as every other monster?
Derek stayed kneeled over Peter's body as the old alpha took his last breath. Slowly, Derek stood and turned to face the group staring at him.
"I'm the Alpha now."
******
It was around two o'clock in the morning when Brooke showed up at the Stilinski household. She was dead tired from the night that had just happened, but she knew it wasn't over for her.
Everyone had quickly fled the clearing in front of the Hale House, everyone except Brooke. Stiles had tried to ask her to come with them, but she just brushed him off, telling him she'd meet up with him later.
Soon it was just Derek and Brooke in the clearing standing across from each other, a clear look of disappointment on Brooke's face.
"Don't be mad," Derek said, the red fading from his eyes. "I'm sorry I lied to your friend, but I needed his help to help me kill Peter."
"Was this your plan all along?" Brooke asked, not moving from her spot. "Wait until Peter is at a disadvantage and take your revenge?"
Derek lowered his eyes.
"I wouldn't have stopped you," Brooke said. Derek looked up in surprise. "I just wish you would've told me."
She didn't wait for a response, instead just walked towards the Hale House. Derek had no choice but to follow her through the door and up the stairs.
"I wasn't sure if you would've told Scott or Stiles," Derek finally admitted.
Brooke looked at him incredulously. "Do you seriously think I would do that?" Brooke scoffed. "You're family, Derek. I would do anything for you."
"You would do anything for Stiles, too," he countered.
Brooke smiled at him sadly. "Not everything."
Their conversation ended there, the sound of a familiar voice yelling out cut them off.
"Derek!" Jackson called out. "Derek, I helped you."
The two looked at each other in annoyance. Leave it to Jackson to interrupt. Derek walked out onto the awning, Brooke close behind him.
"I helped save you," Jackson yelled to the two. "You got what you wanted, right? Now it's my turn to get what I want."
Brooke made eye contact with Derek again and felt herself roll her eyes. She walked down the steps and to the front door, patting Jackson on the shoulder and wishing him a light "good luck" before she left.
Brooke quickly ran to her house to change out of the clothes that were covered in dirt and smelled like sweat. After a quick shower, she changed into fresh clothes and walked out the front door.
She didn't bother driving, the night air felt calm around her now that she didn't have to worry about being attacked by some mysterious alpha. Her walk to the Stilinski house was short, and she found herself walking around to the back of the house when she arrived, not wanting to wake Sheriff Stilinski.
The time on Brooke's phone read 2:09, but she wasn't surprised to see the lamp in Stiles' bedroom still on. She quickly jumped onto the roof, climbing through his bedroom window. Stiles was sat at his desk, eyes glued to the computer screen in front of him.
"Hey," Brooke said softly. Despite the calm tone of her voice, Stiles still jumped at the sound of it. He turned quickly in his chair, but instantly relaxed when he saw the blonde sitting on the edge of the bed.
"Brooke," Stiles greeted. "Why didn't you come through the front door?"
She shrugged and sat on the edge of the bed. "Didn't want to wake your dad."
The two sat in awkward silence for a minute, unsure of what to say. Brooke went to apologize, to reassure Stiles that she didn't know Derek had lied to Scott, but was interrupted as Stiles abruptly stood up from his chair.
He walked towards her, stepping in between her legs and grabbed her face in his hands. He bent down quickly, attaching his lips to hers. Brooke gasped slightly, but quickly kissed him back, wrapping her hands around his neck.
Brooke completely forgot anything she wanted to say as Stiles continued to kiss her. She stood up from her seated position so he wouldn't have to bend over as far, and the kiss deepened almost naturally.
Stiles pulled away for air a few seconds later, and Brooke felt her body buzz from his contact. She looked into his eyes questioningly and let out light laugh.
"What was that for?" She asked.
"That's how I wanted to kiss you for the first time," he answered. "Without the threat of death or your psychotic uncle watching."
Brooke let out a laugh and sat back on the bed, Stiles joining her. Brooke let out a sigh and laid back on the bed, her feet hanging off the edge. Stiles followed her lead, lying back with his shoulder touching hers.
They were quiet for a moment, only this time it wasn't awkward. They stared up at the ceiling, Brooke hyper aware of how the left side of her body was touching the right of his.
"What now?" Stiles asked, eyes still looking up. "Will things go back to normal?"
Brooke turned her head to face him. "No."
Stiles turned to look at her and Brooke took in every feature of his face, an odd expression on her face. She let out a sigh. "Things will never be normal again, Stiles."
Her face was suddenly full of what Stiles could only describe as regret. She stood up and walked towards the door.
"Where are you going?" Stiles asked, pulling himself up to a seated position.
"The hospital," Brooke answered. "I don't want Lydia to wake up and have no one there for her."
She took another step towards the door, but stopped when she didn't hear movement behind her. Brooke turned her head to look back at Stiles.
"You coming?" she asked.
The question shocked Stiles for a moment, but he quickly nodded his head. He stood and grabbed his keys and his phone, and walked towards the blonde waiting for him.
Brooke grabbed Stiles' hand in her own, giving it a light squeeze. Stiles smiled at her in response, and she pulled him out of the house.
They quickly got in Stiles' jeep and drove towards the hospital. The action almost gave Brooke déjà vu, only this time their hands were still connected.
This time, they were going together.
******
PLEASE READ:
and that's the end of season 1!!!!
we went all the way from "and you are?" to "you coming?"
i love them
(pls comment and vote it makes my day)