The Recruit

"Scott, there's nothing here, I told you that from the start, we're just wasting our time, well . . . my time, considering I'm the actual one here!" Stiles announced into his phone throwing his left arm up in aggravation. He had been in the woods, not far from the Hale house, from 11:00pm. It was now 1:35am.

"Just keep looking; it's got to be there somewhere! And I told you, I would normally be there with you but I can't! My dad's set an alarm up on-"

"On the house yes I know. It's just creepy, okay? I'm officially creped out." Stiles muttered to his best friend Scott McCall.

For two and a half hours, Stiles had been inspecting every last inch of the forest for the Desert Wolfs secret hide out but had had no such luck. Sherriff Stilinski had received a call saying someone had spotted a dusty wolf looking animal running through the trees and then stopping before just magically disappearing into thin air. The caller had said they reported it because he was a 'trained hunter' and that he knew his animals, this dusty wolf creature was apparently nothing he'd ever seen. The Sherriff thought it best to tell the pack In case it meant anything to them and Scott immediately jumped to the conclusion that the Desert Wolf was finally here and that they should all be prepared.

Unfortunately for Stiles, Scott's Dad (who would be staying with him for quite some time) had installed an alarm system to the house because of all the 'weird and unexplained' things that had happened in Beacon Hills. This meant that Scott was unable to enter or leave the house without a signal going through to Agent McCall's phone. This wasn't just a nuisance to Melissa and Scott as that meant Stiles was the one having to go out on creepy night trips to the woods on one of the coldest nights of the year.

"Scott, I really don't think anything's here, okay? I have been looking for two and a half hours! I have successfully memorised the location of every bush and tree in this wood and yet have still to find any secret den or hideout that could possibly suggest that the Desert Wolf was in Beacon Hills. Don't you think that you're jumping to Conclusions a bit? I mean, come on, where's the logic in this? Desert Wolf, the clues in the name. Last time I checked Beacon Hills is not a desert and judging by how freakin' cold it is out here, I'd say it's far from it."

About half way through his rant Stiles had turned and started back towards his Jeep which was parked outside the Hale house. He didn't care what Scott said now. He was cold, tired and worst of all board out of his mind. He was going home.

"Okay okay, but something is defiantly off. For a few days now I've been feeling really on edge, didn't Derek say that the desert wolf will have that sort of effect on werewolves?" Scott's deep voice filled the line, obviously feeling the need to justify his actions.

Sudden movement from behind a tree caught Stiles' eye. In any other circumstance's he would have brushed off this odd flicker of movement but when you are in the woods at half past one in the morning and this odd flicker of movement had been happening for the past hour, you start to think, maybe this isn't just any odd

flicker of movement. Stiles stopped dead in his tracks. The hairs on the back of his neck stood on end as the sensation of being watched crept up on him. His breath caught as he glanced around for any dark figures that might be lurking in the shadows.

Scott's concerned questions filled the line but Stiles took no notice as he started to circulate on the spot. Straining his eyes to see in the blackness of the morning. Stiles stopped scanning the area when his sight landed on the dark figure he'd been looking for

His voice dropped to a whisper when he spoke. "Scott, I have to call you back"

The sound of a twig snapping behind him filled the frosty air. It was only then that Stiles realised how quiet it was, all the sounds of the night were silent, and how that one simple snap seemed to echo all around the forest lasting longer than it normally would. His heart quickened in speed, clashing against his ribcage. That's when the panic settled in, Clawing at his chest like a wild animal.

"What? Why? And why are you whispering?" Scott asked sounding Hollow. "Stiles, what's happening? Is it there, have you found the Desert Wolf?"

"I'm being watched" Stiles Hissed through the mouth piece before he hung up, dropping his phone into his pocket.

Breathe stiles. He thought you were possessed by a nagitsune for Christ's sake; you're alive now aren't you? Feeling a little more assured Stiles yelled "Well, come out then." to the figure several meters in front of him. Stiles knew there was more than one, that there was possible three or more people watching him right now, but his attention was drawn to the silhouette slowly moving towards him. "Had fun watching me for the past hour?" Stiles called out, his voice steadier than he would have expected.

"You have very keen senses, Mr. Stilinski." A man's voice drifted through to Stiles' ears. Stiles couldn't help but laugh at this. "Well it's not like you made it hard for me to pick up on your presence." Stiles pointed out. The man stepped closer, now only two meters away.

The panic rose when Stiles felt two pairs of hands grab his upper arm. He looked left at a man with short black hair and stubble with big muscles and then on his right at younger, weaker looking boy with spikey blonde hair, younger than Stiles himself, maybe 15 years of age. Returning his gaze back to the one in front, obviously the leader. They were now standing face to face so Stiles was now able to take in his features. He looked to be about 40, he had curly brown hair and his face looked clean shaven. His noes looked as if it had been broken at one time because of the crook at the bridge. He looked strong, well built.

"So, what can I do for you that I'm guessing I won't like considering the presence of these two lovely men here? Mr…?"Stiles inquired naturally, shoving his hands into his coat pocket. He got no answer to the inquiry on the man's name and what he wanted. He laughed and started to wander about the space in front of Stiles.

"Confident one aren't you? Remind me a bit of myself when I was your age, long time ago now though." The man started. He was shuffling his feet across the floor of the forest, moving aside leaves and twigs as if he were looking for something. "I've been watching you for a number of days now, Mr. Stilinski, you seem to spend an awful lot of time with that friend of yours, Scott, was that his name? The one you were just on the phone with. What was that about the Desert Wolf?"

"That's for me to know and you to forget about!" Stiles warned.

"Stubborn too? Oh well, doesn't matter! That's not what I'm here for." He admitted.

He found what he was supposedly looking for when he bent down and picked something up. It was a large object that filled the man's palm, it looked rather heavy. "My name's Jack Demasi. And you're the murderer who killed my wife."

Before Stiles could add a comment, Jack swung his arm with the object in with great force and beat Stiles over the head. The world around him spun and his vision clouded over before he disappeared into blackness.