Trouble Is Back

“Damian.” Allison repeated, smiling faintly. Hearing how much Kate cared about the boy struck a nerve with her, how lovingly she talked about him… She couldn’t help but see herself in her aunt. How she was doing everything she was for her son, the same as Allison would do for her daughter. She just needed to be as brave as Kate. As confident that at the end of the day, it was all going to be worth it.

“It’ll be nice for him to have a little family again. It’s...I have a lot of regrets in my life, Allison. Not being able to raise him as a proper Argent is one of them. I miss that support, the purpose we all had. Someday, when we’ve finally settled this, maybe he could be a part of that again.”

“He’s the son of the same Alpha as Victoria. She has just as much potential of being one of them. Same as your son.” Allison pointed out, staring at Kate. She was willing to go so far to keep herself and her child safe, but killing another innocent seemed cruel, and unfair. He’d done nothing but adore his father. 

“Our children are Argents.” Kate said, confident that their genes would win out. They weren’t some weak omega breeding family picked for the chance to bear alphas. They were Argents, strong betas with a line going back centuries. Their blood was stronger than any alphas, they were the ones that kept the alphas awake at night. “His children are worthless, yours are the only ones that matter. You’re saving him from growing up to being another monster like his father. If you spare him, he’ll be shipped off with other relatives to learn how to be cruel. It’s what they do, there’s no saving them.”

Allison whimpered as she felt the pain lessen, her hand grabbing onto Kate’s, and she shook her head. She couldn’t make her hurt for her. She was already doing so much for her, taking her pain only made her feel more guilty. More useless.

“He’s the son of an alpha, Kate. That makes him potentially one of them. More one of them than one of us.” She snarled. “And I will take care of Aiden. The boy will learn his place. His anger is good, but he needs to direct it at the people who hurt him and not his allies. If he’s too dangerous, then I’ll make sure he doesn’t hurt anyone again.” The boy was a loose canon and their network was too important to trust to someone who wasn’t in control. Lives depended on them, countless omegas relying on them to make their escape from abusive alphas or to disappear where no one could find them. It could all be jeopardized by one hot headed idiot.

[Text] Does he ever?

[Text] Tell him I love him. I hope to be back soon.

Dark eyes studied her for another long moment, his thoughts whirling. When he came down to it, he was still all but alone in the world. He trusted Scott, to a point, but a newly discovered brother would never warrant the same protection as his children or his mate. No, the only person that had his and his daughter’s best interests in mind was him.

[Picture Message]

[Text] He’s quite the little artist.

As soon as Allison had confirmation from Kate for a meeting place, she snuck out of the house and ran. She wished she was getting out of there for good, but it wasn’t possible right now. The danger she and Victoria would be in too much - she’d seen Dimitri murder a guard in cold blood simply for overhearing a conversation, there was no telling what torture he had in mind for her if she tried to leave with her daughter again.

Kate swallowed her rage and focused on comforting her niece. She murmured soothing nonsense, stroking her fingers through Allison’s hair. With gritted teeth, she leached the pain away into her own bones to spare the girl another ache. “I’m so sorry, Allison. I’m so sorry. You’re going to be okay, I promise you. I’m not going to ever let him hurt you again.”

[Text] Mr. Stilinski-McCall, it's Alpha Megere. Could we chat? I'm a little unnerved by recent events.

He could taste blood over his teeth, but the implications of that video ran deep. There was too much of a risk that they had a traitor in their midst, and Stiles hated to think about that. Their team had stood by them through some of the worst threats the McCalls had faced. They’d risked their lives for them, proved their loyalty a dozen times over, and one of them had let this bitch in.

Kate finished her drink, placing it gently on the table in front of Stiles and flashed him a smile that was more fang than anything else. “Just call me the Benefactor, sweetheart.” She purred. “Because this is your lucky day. You’re going to make out like a bandit because of our partnership, even if all you want to do is tear out my throat right now. Give it some time to sink in, I’m sure you’ll come around. It’s in your blood, after all.”

[Text] Mr. Stilinski-McCall, it's Alpha Megere. Could we chat? I'm a little unnerved by recent events.

An icy chill whispered down Stiles’s back, seeping through his kin an wrapping around his bones. It was like winter had blown over the room, catching the Alpha’s smile and all its cruelty. No one dare breathed, but Stiles could feel his fangs twisting behind his lips, aching to cut through her pulse. No one dared

“But not before you tear apart the Romans for me.” She said, still calm as she slipped her phone away. “I don’t want to hurt you, Stiles. Your husband is a...well, quite frankly, he’s a threat. But as long as you can control him, then we’ll let him and your children live. If you defy me, then there is nowhere on earth you can run that my people can’t find you. We’re connected, organized, and well funded. You don’t want to live your lives on the run, that’s not fair to your family. Trust me, I’ve done it before.”

Derek shook his head as Kate spoke, his anger taking over his body, the little control he had completely focused on not snapping her neck. “I talked to her, I got her to agree to take you in, so we could be together, so we could raise him together.” A growl rumbled in his throat, the Alpha baring his fangs at the Omega. “You didn’t wait, you didn’t trust me, you acted out of your own selfishness and now you want to hide behind some bullshit about family?” His hand was shaking, taking everything in him not to sink his claws into her skin, reminding himself over and over he needed her alive to find his son. “You killed our son’s family! You are no savior, you are murderer!”

She struck fast, all the years of Argent training and another ten on the run honing her into a weapon cut with rage and claws. She slammed her fist into Derek’s solar plexus to knock the wind from his lungs and break his grip around her neck. Another quick jab to the throat to disable him, though she kept her claws in check. There was the temptation to tear it out right now, but Derek still had to suffer. She wasn’t done teaching him yet, there was a world of pain left to drag him through.