Le démon cachait dans l'innocent ?
XX
Drip... drip... drip... drip... drip...
This is a stand still.
Drip... drip... drip... drip... drip...
A man in his apparent forty is calmly sitting legs cross, an ancient and terrifying knife/dagger with large teeth seemingly made out of human bones on his knees.
Drip... drip... drip... drip... drip...
A young man in his late teenagers years, not quite twenty, is sitting across from the man, knees cross and with an almost replica of the man knife in his hands.
Drip... drip... drip... drip... drip...
This is a stand-still.
XX
Beacon hills, a small american town of not quite yet two thousands and surrounded by forests.
A small town where almost everyone knows each other, one way or another.
Charming, pleasant and boring.
Well, it's still has a bowling, a cinema and a club.
And that was true nince years ago, before a student – Paige Mattew- was found dead, mutilated by an animal – mountain lions says the authorities.
Since then, the town seems to have fallen in the bad luck streak : accidents of all kind, mysterious death by animals, missing persons, unpredictable weather... . Bad luck.
The founding family of the town, The Hales, were even almost burn to death in their house and were only saved thanks to a M Finstock, a young economics/pe teacher who was running in the woods. Seeing the house burning and hearing the ones who litted it laughing and celebrating, he had called the police and the fire squad before carefully making his way to the south side of the house and help the Hales escaped the inferno.
In the end it results in ten death, among them Gerard and Kate Argent, father and daughter.
And serial killers.
A year later, the police, FBI and Interpol are still finding crimes with their mondus operandi.
Kate had been eleven at the times of some of them.
So it can be understand that the town are now very protective of The Hales and of young M Finstock and doesn't take well to people questioning about them or bad mouthing them.
Among this strike of tragedy, one come as suddenly, the dear Claudia Stilinski, wife of the now Sheriff and then deputy, died of her illness, leaving her husband and young son alone.
The son is young and homeschooled, no friends but kind enough to help in the neightborhood and always polite to his elders. The town can sometimes swear thas is also agoraphobic because he almost never leave his house, apart from doing the house shopping always going early or late, avoiding people.
They all grieve with the Stilinski.
But lets focus on the now, John Stilinski had been elected Sheriff two years after that time and is now in his second election, if you listen to the town then he will stay Sheriff until his death and maybe even beyond.
So nine years laters, and another serial killers is scaring the town and going through the population like its candy. Man or woman, black or white, poor or rich, all fall to his sadism and violence.
All have their eyes torn apart. Eight victims so far : five men, three women. All between twenty and fifty. No connection between them apart from the obvious. The town itself.
With all this bad luck, the years had made the Sheriff's son a recluse, barely thought of and seen.
And even the Sheriff seems to have forgotten him, as the cases takes all his time and energy, he hadn't been home since the first body was discovered : two month ago.
The police station have now three new deputies : Jordan Parrish and ex-soldier, and two beloved Hales : the twins Derek and Tyler. And even them are on this case despite their youth in the service.
They have put a curfew to try and limit the potential victims and to patrol more easily the sleepy town after dark. No deputies go alone anymore. Always in pair, even the Sheriff.
Bu the particularity of this police station ? They all know about the supernatural. After a disastrous encounter with an hungry and angry fey, who had killed five times before succombing to the Hale claws. The policemen taking it in strides, as much as they could and then working with the Hale pack to defend the town. The Sheriff had swear that he would make evrything in his power to make sure that his son never did find out about it.
That might be why the dear Sheriff doesn't know that his beloved son is not inside thier house peacefuly sleeping the night away, as he eats and talks with the Hale with Melissa McCall and her teenager son Scott, a newly bitten wolf.
Such a shame.
XX
The young man in question is sitting in a dangly little hotel room, pale skins under the artificial and shadow swallowing the wall before him, a patchwork of newpapers clips, pages of books in a perfect disorder, photo of crime scenes, of body parts, corpses and sketches, all related to the recents murders, some of acts of burglary or violence in and outside the town.
A predator hunting his next prey.
The hunter is concentrated on the wall, knife in his hands, long pale fingers flexing on the bone (the handle of the knife/dagger) in his grip in regular interval, as if he is listening to a music only him can hear.
The ringtone of his phone echos in the silent room, once, twice before falling silent again.
A text then.
Posture rigid, he read it « Two weeks. C » he then sighs forlornly, he will have to do it alone then, he threw the phone on the bed and return to his wall, this time ripping a photo of it.
XX
Parrish and Tyler drove to the Sheriff house, having been tasked to retrieve some clothes and a file that could be related to the case.
They are startled by curses and colorful ones at that coming from under the battered blue Jeep parked right next to their boss house, the same Jeep they have always seen there since working for the force.
« Come on come Roscoe you son of a bitch ! Fuck fuck fuck ! Don't do this come on ! Don't make me go that that ass-bull monkey filfthy slimy...bastard... nononono Roscoe come on ! »
They exchange a bemused look and make their way to the Jeep, to see who would dare touch the Boss car. They have to bend down to be able to see brown hair and slim but muscular arms.
« Man, can you pass me the wench ? Roscoe is dying on me » said the young culprit when he finally acknowledge them after Tyler cleared his throat pointedly.
«Sure, after you tell me why you're working on my boss car, mister ? »
« Buddy, one : that's my car, two : no way would my dad, your boss, drive it ! Wench now ? Please ? Thanks dude ! » and the man even goes as far as making a gimme hand sign.
« Wait, you're the Sheriff son ? » Tyler and Parrish asked in synchro while exchanging a suprise look.
« Lemme guess new in town or never have been spending time with our awful gossipers ? » snips the young man finally coming from under the car to retrieve the wench as none of them had moved.
The young man can't be older than nineteen -twenty, he does ressemble their boss, he is slim but his healthy musculatur shows that he works out, the look on his face his neutral but Tyler being a werewolf scent the resignation from him and a bit of sadness. As if he was used to not being known or recognized as his father's son.
Tyler and Parrish felt bad and began to understand why Tara, another fellow deputy, always asks the boss to at least go himself to his house, either to sleep or to run errands.
Tyler can almost bet that even his mother and Alpha, had forgotten about his boss having a son or she wouldn't have insist on him sleeping at their house for the duration of the case.
Fuck ! They both look horrified, does it mean that they had left the Sheriff son vulnerable, alone, day and night in his house without protection while the serial killer is hunting and sure knows now that the police is searching for him ?
They pale and almost turn green at this awful realisation.
« Guys ? You alright ? If you need to puke your gut out, go inside ok ? Roscoe doesn't need anything else happening to him, he's dying as it is ! »
XX
Fortunatly for Stiles but unfortunatly for these two, the topic was forgotten as another body was found in the park not even an hour later.
Like all the others crime scenes, there is too many scents to identify the killer. And the body has no eyes.
That night, Tyler kept a careful eye on his boss, who is tired but talking softly to Scott and Cora about sports.
Tyler began to analyse his boss behavior more closely, after meeting Stiles he began to feel more familiar with the tendrill of guilt as John is having a good time with the pack and treating the young Scott as a son while his true son is alone at their house, surely waiting for him to come back or feeling resigned like he had that afternoon.
Tyler quickly excuse himself, and go to run his favorite trail, a good run to clear his head and to keep his calm. He even goes to the Stilinski house, and focusing his ears and eyes, located Stiles, who is still working on his Jeep, in the garage this time. No music, or any others sounds to keep him company, just him, his car and a silent house.
It makes his teeth greet with anger at his boss, his pack and his alpha. The pup is alone because of them.
After that, it's a routine for him to jog to the Stilinski house, alone or with Parrish. Sometimes Stiles is working on his car, others he's working on his pc at the kitchen table or the house is dead. No heartbeat, these nights he's with Tara, babysitting her kids and playfully bantering with her about being paid for it.
It's no wonder that Derek caught up on it, after all they are still twin and working together, but it's not a good time, it's been two weeks and now the house is dead silent but Stiles is not at Tara's. Parrish and him worked out that Stiles is a free lancer worker, don't have any friends in town and is rarely seen apart from doing the shopping twice a week, and working on two masters – in litterature and history in all the things.
Just by watching him, Tyler knows that Stiles is a genius, lonely and maybe a bit autistic.
He had begun to see him as pack, another brillant little brother.
It's two days after Stiles disappeared that Derek ambushed him. Tyler is tired and worried and so once alone, talks and talks until Derek stops him to let him sleep.
After that, Derek joins them in watching out for Stiles, praying that he hadn't been kidnap or worse, after all, a serial killer is still running loose.
XX
« You know, being deputies won't stop me from filling up a complaint for stalking, right ? »
The three men startled and tried to not look sheepish but stoic. Stiles is almost impressed. Jordan smooth and calm reply make him laugh.
« Why Stiles ? We're just doing our shopping and with the curfew we need to do it before patrolling the streets. That's the burden of every man of the law in this town. »
« Keep telling yourself that... anyways bye guys and don't buy that crap, your heart will thank you ! »
They don't say it aloud, but they're relieve to see him back and alive.
Now, where has he been?
XX
It became quickly apparent that Stiles doesn't trust anyone. Not even his father. Who for all the times they spy on them had maybe talked twice.
Stiles is one way or another always working, always keeping busy. Books, pc, games, his car, he is always in motion.
Derek can admit to be awed of the kid – six years his junior- he would have liked to be this dedicated to anything when at this age. At least Paige and then Kate wouldn't have happened.
Well, you could remake the world with « what if » but it doesn't change the facts that it happened and that the truth is always hurtful.
The young man doesn't let anyone approached him, always keeping his distance, oh he is friendly for sure, but he subtly made sure to make you know that he doesn't want or need you in his life.
Sarcastic little shit... He sighs and rubs his forehead. His shift his endless it seems to him in that moment. And no matter what they do, what they investigate they still have no clue about the killer.
The human or creature responsible is a freaking master of deception. So vexing... and thinking of vexing, his thoughts turn once more toward Stiles, who hab been absent for a week now, passing some exams in two states over, that doesn't stop them from patrolling near Stiles'house. And when did he began to think about that house as Stiles and not his John?
XX
« You're sure it's working ? » the scepticism in the young man voice can be heard loud and clear as he inspects the circle at his feet.
« Yes, now we only need to wait, and it will take a bit of time, fitting for such a long hunt. » come the smug and moking voice of the older man.
« Fuck off ! I can be patient ! »
XX
Two weeks had passed and Stiles is still not home.
He knows he's not the best father and that his son doesn't need him anymore, hadn't for a very long time if he is to be honest with himself, not since Claudia died and he fell into his work and the supernatural world.
Now his only son, Claudia and his, is missing.
He passed his exam, with golden colors, and after that no one knows what had happened to him. None had seen him. He just disappeared. His phone and personnal affairs (credit card, clothes) had been found in his car, still parked before the hotel.
Guilt eat at him. Because he wasn't even aware that Stiles wasn't in town, that Stiles had gone and that he was passing a master. Wasn't the one to notice him missing. To enquire where he was... that made him the worst father.
It was Tara, Parrish and Tyler and even Derek who did.
Tara worried out of her mind that had come to him because Stiles had called her telling her that he was coming back from his exam but never made it.
Parrish and Tyler who phone the police in NewYork and Derek helping them with Stiles schedule.
Not him.
His flesh and blood gone missing, and he hadn't known. Hadn't been worried.
Happy to be with the pack and Melissa and Scott, and working the case like a dog chewing a bone.
What a fool he was, now sitting in Stiles bedroom, he couldn't say when his boy began to listen to jazz or classic, or read poetry and horror novel.
When exactly had Stiles become a man ? This room wasn't his boy. This was a stranger room. Adult and serious. This was the stranger room he had been living with-
Living with ?
Who was he trying to kidd.. the Station and The Hale house had become his « house ». He was the stranger in this house.
The house he had buy with Claudia.
And there lie the problem, since Claudia had fallen ill and then died, he hadn't been there for Stiles. For his little Mieczyslaw.
And for the first time since his wife death, he let himself cried until he couldn't.
He had lost his son.
XX
A woman had disappeared, her kitchen is covered in her blood.
Her eyes are on the kitchen counter.
It's certain that she's fatally injured.
It was her fiance who had called the police panicked because she should have joined him at her parents but never made it.
In the kitchen, on the white wall, the killer had let a memento for the police. With her blood he had written :
« Où est-il ? Où se cache-t-il ? Le démon cachait dans l'innocent ? »