He had expected this. Honestly, he was surprised it had taken this long.

Not that Derek hadn't enjoyed the peace of early summer, if you could call it that. But would there ever be any real peace in Beacon Hills?

The incident at the warehouse had ended as well as he could have hoped. The Argents had backed off without a fight, and Lydia had managed to reform Jackson to a pure wolf. Of course, he would have preferred it if Gerard had been killed, but he knew he was asking a lot. Scott had been incredibly resourceful, poisoning him the way he had. More resourceful than Derek had been, anyway. If it hadn't been for Scott's foresight, Derek would almost certainly have died that night. So if Gerard was still crawling around in the limbo between life and death, that was fine by him. The pack had gotten out alive. That was all that mattered.

He had found Peter easily enough. Even if he hadn't been able to track him by scent, he was bleeding heavily and cursing none-too-quietly under his breath. Derek had immediately punched him unconscious. He knew the way wolves got when they were hurt, especially wolves like Peter. If he was wounded, he might lash out and hurt Sadie in retribution. Derek wasn't going to take that chance.

Since then, he'd tried his best to keep a close eye on him. But it wasn't easy. For one thing, Derek was now spending a lot of time with Jackson, trying to teach him how to control himself. The full moon was steadily approaching, and while Jackson had survived a few as the kanima, he had yet to live through one as a werewolf. There was no telling how he would react with a new set of powers.

Derek had expected Jackson to be flippant. After all, even a freshly bitten werewolf would have a difficult time causing as much damage as Jackson had as the kanima. But Jackson had actually been surprisingly cooperative. He still had a smug façade, and he prided himself in being a colossal pain in the ass. But underneath it all Derek could smell the fear—the desperation to stop himself from hurting anyone else. That fear made Jackson a good student, and if he could hold onto it, Derek was fairly certain it would make him a good wolf.

But most of Derek's time had been spent with Isaac, combing the woods and the preserve for any signs of Erica and Boyd. It had been weeks, and still, no one had heard from them. They tried calling and texting, staking out their family homes. They followed the plan Isaac head set up with them, taking a southern route out of town to look for clues. But any scent had since washed away. Derek had even debated paying Chris Argent a visit, but he knew it would yield no answers. Argent had released the pair of them and ran before any other hunters could realize what had happened or who had a hand in it. He didn't know where Erica and Boyd had headed any more than Derek did.

There was one explanation, of course. But Derek wasn't ready to consider the possibility that Erica and Boyd had gone from being captured by the Argents to being captured by the Alpha Pack. Because if the alphas were involved, it was more than likely that Erica and Boyd weren't just missing. They were dead.

That was not an option. So he elected to ignore it.

All things considered, Derek was keeping busy. But there was always that nagging worry at the back of his mind—a voice telling him that trouble would strike before he could get his life in order. Maybe that was part of the reason he kept coming back to the old house. He wanted to remember what normal felt like, what it had been like to live life with a pack. He and Laura had been alone for so long that it was hard to remember. He wanted to be better Alpha. He needed to be a better Alpha. Maybe that started with coming home.

Today he had gotten lucky. He had been walking around the house when he heard the car coming up the road—a large vehicle, worn breaks, at least fifty thousand miles on the engine. It wasn't hard to place. Sadie had stopped by the train car enough that he knew what her mother's van sounded like.

The car stopped a respectable distance away, presumably what she thought was out of his ear shot. He headed outside to meet her, listening to her light footsteps on the forest floor. She was doing her best to be discreet. If she was trying to sneak up on him, he figured it was only fair he return the favor.

Derek hopped off the porch and moved into the tree line, out of sight from the front door. He watched as Sadie crept into the clearing that used to be his front yard, her head twisting back and forth as she scanned the area for potential threats. Not finding anything that concerned her, she moved up to the porch, taking special care to walk on the edges of the stairs where they would creak less. She'd made it all the way to the front door when Derek called out to her.

"He's not here, you know."

BANG!

Derek was prepared for the bullet she sent his way. He merely stepped out onto the other side of the tree, raising an eyebrow at the gun she held in her hands. "Aren't you supposed to be good with that? You missed me pretty bad."

Sadie didn't find that funny. She lowered the gun, but didn't drop her stance. "Where is he, Derek?"

"I don't know."

"Don't tell me that you don't know, because I know that you're lying."

"Sadie, go home. I told you not to worry about Peter."

"Yeah, and I didn't for a while. I got through my finals like a good girl, and now he needs to go. He's not getting away with everything he did to Lydia."

Derek sighed. He'd known that it was pointless to tell Sadie to drop it. She cared about Lydia like family, and wasn't going to forget what she had gone through. He could smell the familiar fury radiating off her, just as it had been when she'd shot Peter at the warehouse. Honestly, Derek was surprised she'd waited as long as she had to take a second crack at him.

"I made it clear to Peter that he wasn't wanted here," he said, walking forward into the clearing. "I don't know where he is right now."

"And that's it? You told him to beat it and that's supposed to work?"

"Sadie, I want him gone as much as you do, but I'm not going to let you kill him."

"He deserves to die."

She said it without the slightest hesitation. She said it with such conviction that it actually threw him. He'd known she wanted to hurt Peter, but he hadn't expected this.

"Maybe he does. But that's not your decision to make."

"It is if you won't make the call."

"This is my call. I'm the Alpha."

"So what?" she asked, half laughing. "You can't pull rank on me. You're not my Alpha. I'm not even a werewolf."

"But you're still pack."

The sentence hung in the air between them, closing the distance as they stood on opposite ends of the grass. He felt her anger falter, momentarily overcome with surprise and quiet pleasure. After a few moments, she resigned herself. She dropped the gun to her side.

"You're seriously going to let him live? After everything he's done to us? Everything he's done to Lydia, to—…to you?"

She had tried to hide the falter in her voice, the pause where she tripped over an unsaid word. Derek was thankful. He didn't want to hear Sadie say Laura's name, didn't want to be reminded of just how treacherous the decision to keep Peter alive really was. And if Sadie was still considerate enough not to bring up his sister, then it meant she wasn't so far gone. He could still talk her out of her fury.

"Yes," he said simply. "You know, despite what you guys seem to think of me, I don't always consider murder as a first option. Only when there's an imminent threat."

"But Peter is…"

"Dangerous, I know. But I can keep him in check. For now, I need him alive."

"Why?"

And there it was. The simple question he knew she had to ask. And the answer was simple enough. He needed Peter alive because Peter knew things—things about being an Alpha, about the Alpha Pack, about all the other potential threats that were coming their way. Peter was dangerous, but he wasn't the most dangerous player on the board. There were bigger things to worry about.

Derek knew that he should tell Sadie about the Alpha Pack. She had a right to know. There was no way she wasn't going to be implicated, between her relationship with him, her friendship with Isaac, her uncanny ability to wind up in the middle of any danger she could find. She needed to be prepared, and he needed all the help he could get.

But as they stood on the lawn and Derek looked at her, all he could see was a high school girl. Here she was, sixteen years old with a gun in her hand and ready to commit murder if she had to. What sort of life was she being forced to live in Beacon Hills? What sort of life was she being forced to leave behind? At sixteen, she should be trying out for plays, going to the beach with her friends, sneaking out with her boyfriend. That was the life Sadie deserved. Normality.

Maybe she would get dragged into things later. But that didn't mean she shouldn't enjoy the peace while she could.

Derek knew that he should tell Sadie the truth. But instead, he lied.

"Peter's been a werewolf a lot longer than I have. There are a lot of things he knows that I never had the chance to learn. If it wasn't for him, we never would have known what was going on with Jackson."

"He read it from the bestiary. So take the laptop, and then kill him."

"It's about more than the bestiary. Peter was the only one who knew how to save Jackson. He didn't read that in a book."

"And you think he's going to teach you? Out of the kindness of the heart he doesn't have?"

"He doesn't need to teach me for me to learn." Sadie was shaking her head, unimpressed with his argument, but he pressed on. "The past few months have been bad, and I know that. I wanted to be the Alpha, and I haven't done a really good job of it."

"No," she agreed, crossing her arms. "You kind of suck."

"Alright. I kind of suck. But I'm trying to be better. And if I'm going to be a better Alpha, I have to know what I'm doing. And you of all people know that…I don't really know what I'm doing."

Sadie sighed, trying to sound exasperated. But she couldn't hide her bitter smile from him. "You realize this is the one thing Deaton told you not to do, right? You can't trust Peter."

"I don't trust him. But that doesn't mean I can't work with him."

"Derek, there is no working with Peter. He just bides his time until he finds a way to get what he wants. He always has a second agenda."

"And when we find out what it is, we'll stop him. Isn't that why I keep you around?"

"Oh, so it's my responsibility to bail your ass out? Great." Her glare made him grin, which in turn made her glare even harder. She holstered her gun and brandished a vicious finger at him. "When this all goes to shit, I am going to kill him."

"You're not going to kill anyone, Sadie."

"Yes, I am. And you can wolf-out all you want, but that's not gonna stop me."

"You're sixteen. I'm not letting you commit murder. If someone has to put Peter down, it will be me."

"Yeah, no offense, but that didn't really stick last time."

Now it was Derek glaring, and Sadie giving him a small, smug smile.

"You've still got a life outside of all this," he said firmly. "I'm not going to let you throw it away for revenge."

"You're worried about my record?" she asked with a laugh.

"I'm worried about making sure all of this doesn't become your whole life. Just enjoy it while you can. Which reminds me…" Derek paused, pulling a set of keys out of his pocket and tossing them over to her. "Happy belated birthday."

Sadie caught them with instinct more than intention. She stared down at the keys in her hands, and didn't seem to really process what they were for a full five seconds. When it hit, her jaw dropped and her wave of glee hit Derek at full force. "No. No way. No way!"

"Yes way," he mocked, chuckling.

"Derek, this is…this is awesome. Thank you."

"Just take care of her, okay?"

"…What?"

"The Camaro? Take care of it for me."

There was a beat of silence as Sadie stared at him in shock. Then, she hurled the keys back at him as hard as she could. Derek barely managed to catch them he was so surprised.

"Oh, no! No, no, no, no, no!"

"What do you mean, 'no'?" he asked, affronted. "Two seconds ago you were practically squealing."

"Yeah! I thought you were giving me spare keys! So I could—So I could take a joy ride or something!"

"What good is a joy ride gonna do you? You need to be able to drive places—school, work…"

"I can drive to places! How do you think I got here?"

"Your mom's van, which I could hear about a mile off. You can't keep driving your mother's car. What if she needs it?"

"Then someone else will drive me, like always. Lydia and Stiles both have perfectly good cars."

"Yes, and now so do you."

He tossed the keys back to her, but the moment she caught them, she threw them right back. "Derek, I'm not taking the Camaro."

"Why not? I thought you liked it?"

"Of course I like it! It's a fucking Camaro!"

"Okay, then why not?"

"First of all? I don't have the money to pay for that."

"I'm not asking you to pay for it," he said, throwing the keys again. "I'm giving it to you."

"You can't just give me your car!" she yelled, hurling the keys back. "What are you gonna drive?"

"My new car. It's about time I got something a little more functional than a sports car."

"You've got another car?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Yes, I've got another car. And I have enough money. I don't need any of yours."

"Derek, I can't just take a car."

"You can if it's a gift."

"What the hell am I supposed to tell my mom? That I found a Camaro on the side of the road with the keys still in the ignition and I decided to take it? Or that the guy who was on the news a couple months ago for being suspected of murder bumped into me on the street and decided I looked like a needed a new car?"

"It's not a new car. I've had it for a few years now."

"That doesn't change anything, and you know it."

Derek deflated. He hadn't expected Sadie to put up this much of a fight. She was a teenager who needed a car, and he was offering her one without a catch. To him, it was a simple decision. But of course, he should have realized there was more to it for her. She had other people in her life. It was hard to remember what that was like.

He flipped the keys around his finger, crossing the clearing so he could drop them in her hands. "I get it. You don't have to decide anything right now. But I want you to have the car, even if it's just for emergencies. So we'll think of a place to keep it, and I can take you to the DMV so everything's in your name. I'll even take you to get the insurance."

"God, insurance," Sadie groaned. She pushed the keys into his chest again, shaking her head violently. "Derek, I'm not making enough money to pay my own insurance. A teenage girl in a sports car? Can you imagine what that's gonna cost?"

"I'll pay for it. Don't worry about it."

This time when he gave her the keys, she kept them. She stared down at them, flipping them around her finger just as he had. He thought she was coming around to the idea. But then she looked up at him, the suspicion plain on her face.

"Why are you so intent on me taking the car?"

"Because I don't need it, and you do."

"I'm doing fine without it. Why do I need the car? What aren't you telling me?"

Derek could have laughed. Of course she would notice that something was wrong. It was so perfectly Sadie. She wasn't going to just take the charity and roll with it, not when she could smell the hidden intentions like a bloodhound. But he couldn't tell her that he was worried about her. Things were about to get worse, and he didn't want her stranded waiting on a ride from Stiles or Lydia. She needed a way to get around, to get out if she needed. That was his only priority.

Thankfully, Sadie seemed to be making her own conclusions through his silence.

"Is this a bribe?"

"What? No."

She cut her eyes at him. "This is a bribe, isn't it? You think I won't kill Peter just because you gave me a sports car?"

"That's not at all what I was thinking," he said casually. "But if you want to take it that way…"

Sadie shook her head. She chewed on the inside of her cheek for a few seconds, staring at him intently. "You really aren't going to let me shoot him?"

"I need him," Derek said simply. "When I don't, you'll be the first to know."

They stared at each other, but Sadie broke first. She threw her hands up in the air, storming around him. "Fine. Fine, do what you want."

"You're gonna take the car?"

"Yes, I'm gonna take the car. I've got no idea what I'm gonna say to my mom, but if you're not going to let me shoot Peter, then yes, I'm taking the car."

"We'll figure something out," he said earnestly. "If you don't want to tell her the truth, I'll help you come up with a cover story."

"I'm not letting you pay for the insurance, though. I can't just take a car for free. I'm paying you back."

"Any money you give me I'm just gonna give back to you. You've spent enough on me and the pack."

"You're the worst, you know that?"

"Yeah. I've been told."

Sadie rolled her eyes. "You know, instead of buying a new car, you should be looking into buying yourself a new house. You can't keep squatting on bank owned property. And painting the door isn't doing much to make this place homey."

Derek glanced behind him at the shell of his old house. Most of it was still broken and charred, though he'd done his best to clean it up when he was staying with the pack. The windows were covered where they'd been letting in drafts, and he'd brought in some newer furniture. The front door had been painted a bright red, covering the calling card the Alpha Pack had left behind

"You're right," he said, turning back to her. "I'll see what I can do."

"Good. Because I don't want to take a car from a homeless person."

"Go home, Sadie," Derek said in the most disapproving voice he could manage. "Have a normal summer."

"Okay, okay. I'm going. But you're not getting rid of me. Let me know if you need help apartment hunting."

"I will."

She waved at him over her shoulder, jingling the keys as she went. He honed in one the sound, tracking it through the woods. He didn't relax until she got back into the van. The car started, pulled back out onto the road, and then she was gone.

"Well, I think that went fairly well. Thank you for having my back, by the way."

"Shut up."

Derek tensed as Peter strolled out of the house. There was still a small hitch in his stride, a healing limp from Sadie's gunshot wound. His arm was wrapped in a sling as well. The surface of his skin had already sealed, but the bone and muscle underneath was still tender. Derek hoped it was causing him twice as much pain as he complained that it did.

"It's very touching, the relationship you two have. The car might have been a little heavy handed, though."

"Shut up."

"I mean, I understand you're going for the whole big-brother vibe. But you realize they're going to know she's driving your car, right? You're just painting a target on her back."

"The Alpha pack has been here for weeks. She's already got a target on her back. It's not about keeping her hidden. It's about keeping her safe."

"Right. And it's not at all about making up for the fact that you willingly killed her best friend's boyfriend?"

Derek didn't answer. He heard Peter chuckle.

"You know, I'm not sure who's worse at gaining back her trust—you or Stiles."

That certainly caught his attention.

"Stiles?" Derek turned around, furrowing his brow as he stared at his uncle. "What do you mean?"

"You know, the whole I-turned-off-your-phone-trying-to-protect-you-but-inadvertantly-took-away-your-right-to-choose thing." Peter shrugged, evidently waiting for some acknowledgement from Derek. When he didn't receive one, his eyebrows shot up. "No? Nothing? You really need to keep better tabs on your pack, Derek."

Derek bristled grumpily. "I don't make a habit of eavesdropping on teenagers."

"Hey, I'm not eavesdropping. Occasionally I pass by the house to see if anything interesting is going on, but that's just called being well informed. You miss a lot when you're dead. Like Sadie and Stiles are actually dating now? That's kind of cute. I mean, it's revolting, but it's also kind of cute."

"Why do you care?"

"Oh I don't," Peter said quickly. The porch groaned as he leaned against one of the beams. "At least, not like that. But I do make it my business to know as much about other people as possible."

"So you can manipulate them?"

"So I can make good decisions. Something I take it you're not too familiar with." Derek growled, his red eyes flashing, and Peter held up his hands. "I'm just saying—if you're going to be a good Alpha, you have to know the people that you're dealing with. Example! Where would I be now if I hadn't kept such close tabs on Scott after I bit him?"

"Dead," Derek said wistfully.

"Exactly! I kept an eye on Scott. I wanted him to join me, but of course—teenagers these days. They're so self-involved. So I had to find a way to convince him. I had to figure out what it was that made Scott tick. That led me to Allison, which incidentally led me to Kate, who just so happened to be the exact person I was looking for—the one person who I hated enough to keep breathing in that coma. If I hadn't gotten to know Scott, I never would have known about Sadie, or Lydia, and I wouldn't be standing here with you now."

"I kind of wish you weren't."

Peter pouted. "Fine. Be stubborn. You're very good at it, I commend you. But you can't deny that I'm right. You can go ahead and continue thinking about it as brotherly concern. But not knowing is the first mistake you have to avoid as an Alpha. It might not be my life on the line next time."

Derek didn't argue as Peter hopped off the porch, walking back into town alone. He was glad to be rid of him, but at the same time, there was nothing he wanted more than to follow him. One half of him wanted to keep him close, as he would with any enemy. The other was so distrustful that he didn't want Peter anywhere in his vicinity. He knew that Deaton was right. Sadie was right. Peter's power was in his words, his talent to manipulate others into doing exactly what he wanted while they labored under the illusion of free will. Peter had already fooled Derek once. He wasn't sure if he could trust himself to stop it from happening again.

"I don't need him," Derek said quietly, willing himself to believe that it was true.

Peter chuckled from somewhere deeper in the woods. "Keep telling yourself that, sport."