Chapter 10

Her heart hammered against her chest as she raced up the stairs, taking them two at a time until she had to pause to catch her breath. She willed her breathing to slow, forcing herself into a state of calm and focus. It took longer to slip into that it had months ago. She had almost forgotten how much control was required to tie a leash around her emotions, to rein them in and shove them away, where they could not dictate her actions.

Almost. But not quite.

Allison reached the top of the stairs. She dismantled the lock on the loft door and slid it back, revealing a small blonde figure inside. Kara's head snapped up, revealing something like a grim determination on her face covering the fury simmering beneath. Kara had briefly explained on the phone to Allison that she'd ended up being left behind by Derek and the others. Locked inside the loft while they went to destroy Deucalion.

Kara didn't thank the teenager before her as she stalked out of the loft. "They'll be at an abandoned mall on the outskirts of town. Not far from the bank," she stated stonily. Allison nodded, following her down the many stairs to where her car—with a trunk-load of weapons—waited for them. She'd brought the crossbow Kara had used last time they'd seen each other, knowing that it would be needed again. A small part of her was fearful of what they were walking into, but another, bigger, part was relieved. Utterly relieved to finally be doing something to help, instead of hiding behind the promise she had made to her father. Allison's clenched her jaw at the reminder of the risk her actions posed to her relationship with him. If he found out about what she was doing...She didn't want to finish the thought.

Kara's expression was as cold and solid as marble as she climbed into Allison's car. Allison threw her a glance out of the corner of her eye, observing the blonde's tightly folded arms and tense body. She wanted to ask about how she'd ended up locked in the loft but now was not the right time. Later, maybe. After they had...after they had either won or lost this battle with Deucalion.

Not a word was spoken between them as they drove to the meeting place and pulled into the mall parking lot. Kara jumped out of the car the moment they came to a stop, a distant thrum in her veins. She was well aware of the power residing beneath the surface of her skin, itching to be spent, to be unleashed. Normally it would have scared her, but this time it made her feel powerful. Kara knew that she had little control over her abilities, but after feeling weak for so long...she lifted her chin higher, her shoulders squaring in preparation for what was to come.

"Here," Allison said, handing Kara the familiar, sleek crossbow she had used previously. She took it with a grateful nod, suddenly reminded of the gun and hunting knife in her jacket pocket. "How do we do this?" she asked, levelling Allison with a business-like stare. The teen was almost surprised at the question, forgetting that she was the hunter here. She had been trained for this, put through hours of gruelling lessons to make decisions and lead other hunters. Or other people, in this case. Kara was no hunter, but as Allison met her unflinching gaze she recognised the gleam in her eyes as that similar to the one she had seen in her fellow hunters—one that she probably possessed herself. Allison took her own bow and quiver out of the trunk and started towards the mall entrance. "We observe," she instructed, "then wait for the right time to strike. We should be able to get a vantage point somewhere up high—a floor directly above if we can."

Kara nodded without any comment. She didn't know what they would be walking into—it could have turned into a bloodbath, for all she knew. It couldn't be that easy to eliminate Deucalion. Kara had only seen him once, but even that meeting had been enough to make her stomach roil at the mere mention of his name. And she had definitely learned enough about him to know that he was not one to be caught unaware.

Allison put a finger to her lips as they entered the mall. Quiet—they would have to be silent if they wanted to remain undetected. No noise had reached them yet, but as they ventured further into the dusty, neglected building, they began to hear the jarring sounds of fighting. Distant roars and growls echoed throughout the building, and goosebumps appeared on Kara's arms. She glanced over at Allison, whose face was tight with concentration and something else. Something that made Kara's stomach clench and sent her mind spinning with anxiety.

She prayed that her worry for Scott and the others was not warranted.

They climbed up a flight of stairs, carefully avoiding shards of glass and pieces of rubble in the process. The shouts of pain and furious roars became louder now, almost unbearable to listen to as they reached a spot that seemed to be right above the fighting—and as they neared the edge of a floor that lacked barriers to stop people from falling, Kara realised that it was. Allison gave her a wide-eyed look and jerked her head, motioning for her to creep forward. Slowly. Allison pulled out an arrow from her quiver and notched it, keeping the tip lowered to the ground but poised for action. Kara did the same with her crossbow. She gripped the handle tightly as the sounds of fighting ceased. What had happened? Had someone been killed? It was an effort not to peer over the edge of the floor, but Kara knew that doing so would give her away. Allison paused and held up a hand, motioning for Kara to do the same. They stilled, waiting as conversation reached them. Deucalion's unnervingly casual voice floated up from the floor below them and Kara clenched her jaw at the sound. Allison shook her head, as if sensing that Kara's anger. Wait, Allison's eyes seemed to say. So they waited.

"Kill him," Deucalion ordered. A moment of silence, then, "The others can go."

Kara's mind spun, trying to work out what he meant. Realisation, cruel and unforgiving, dawned on her. Derek. He wanted Derek to kill one of his pack members—but who?

"You're beaten," Deucalion continued. "Do it, Derek. Take the first step."

Kara shot a pointed pleading look at Allison. Now—they needed to act now. But Allison only shook her head. Not yet, she mouthed.

Kali's sharp voice cut in. "Are we serious with this kid? Look at him. He's an alpha—to what? A couple of useless teenagers?"

"Some have more promise than others."

"Let him rise to the occasion then," Kali suggested in a dangerous tone. "What will it be Derek? Pack, or family?"

Kara's heart lurched as someone cried out in pain. A warning for Derek. She shot another glance at Allison, who gave the slightest of nods and strode forwards with her bow drawn. Kara followed, heart slamming against her ribcage as she neared the edge of the floor and laid eyes upon the scene below her—but she didn't have time to hesitate, to stop and linger on the look on Derek's face. Allison and Kara fired together, raining down flash-bang arrows on the werewolves. The first one hit the alpha twins, who Kara had noticed with an ounce of terror had conjoined to form some kind of mega-werewolf. She watched with satisfaction as they were flung back, and the shrieks of the alpha pack began to fill the air. Kara let arrow after arrow fly. Only a few managed to find a target, but it didn't matter—the blinding flashes of light were enough to disorientate the alpha pack, forcing them to release the werewolves they had been holding hostage.

"Your eyes!" Deucalion shouted at his pack. "Cover your eyes!"

His words were drowned out by the whistling of arrows and explosions, and through the clouds of smoke, Kara could see that he was now crouching on the escalator, cowering with alarm. Good, she thought. Let him feel out of control and fearful for once.

Allison fired her last arrow and stood proudly as Scott and the others rose, regaining their strength. Kara lowered her crossbow warily, eyeing the werewolves down below. Ennis gave a warning growl as he faced Scott, who roared in answer, his body a tightly wound coil waiting to spring free. Kara watched on wide with eyes as they ran towards each other; the big, hulking form of Ennis somehow not swaying the determination on Scott's face. With a sickening thud that reverberated through the air they collided, the force sending them both reeling backwards. Scott landed on his feet, head bowed. Kara inhaled sharply as she caught sight of his face. She turned wide eyes on Allison, who's expression mirrored the shock that Kara felt. She shot a glance at Scott's face just to make sure that she hadn't imagined it, what she thought she had seen. But there it was—his eyes, glowing brightly in the dim building, had transformed from their usual golden yellow to a vibrant, ruby red. The eyes of an Alpha.

But Scott squeezed his eyes shut, and when they opened again his golden irises had returned.

Derek came out from behind an unaware Ennis and struck his back, sending him stumbling forwards. They fought in a blur of movement, jaws snapping and claws slashing through the air, trying to find skin to tear at. Great, monstrous growls resonated around them, a terrible sound that unearthed repressed memories in Kara's mind. Her mother, turned half-mad with the pain of transforming, roaring in agony. The growls of the werewolf who had attacked them that fateful night. The memories and sounds piled up in Kara's mind, confusing her senses so much so that she could no longer distinguish between the sounds coming from the brawling werewolves and the sounds coming from inside her own head. She watched with the dull sensation of seeing but not comprehending as Derek and Ennis neared the edge of the floor, each gripping onto the other in an attempt to gain the upper hand. Scott lurched forward and flung out a clawed-hand, raking it across Ennis' calf. The alpha roared in pain and arched his back, then fell silent. No growling, no noise came from either Derek or Ennis as they started to tip backwards. The sudden loss of noise snapped Kara out of her reverie and with mind-numbing force realisation slammed into her. She knew what was happening now as Derek and Ennis tipped over the edge, no more floor left to catch them. Only cold, hard concrete waited for them at the bottom.

Kara collapsed onto her hands and knees, crossbow clattering to the ground. She gripped the edge of the dusty floor so hard that the tips of her fingernails bent, as if she needed something to keep her from falling too. She locked eyes with Derek, his face a mask of utter disbelief, and in that moment Kara knew that she would never be able to stop seeing his face as he fell. The image of his face as he looked at her for the last time would be forever implanted in her brain, a cruel reminder of her loss.

"No," she breathed, as Derek disappeared over the edge and the world exploded into light.

It was strange, at first. Darkness enveloped her, tugging her down, but Kara found that she didn't mind it. A sense of relief came with giving in to the riptide of numbness, and she became weightless, floating. There was nothing that could touch her here. Nothing to harm her. Just an endless expanse of night, of darkness lulling her to sleep. She wanted to delve deeper into this state of bliss, but there was something pulling on her mind, holding her back.

"Kara," a voice whispered, urging her to respond. It was the voice of a girl. Recognition stirred in Kara, enough so that when the person called her name again she waded through thick blankets of bliss and forced her way out of the darkness.

"Kara, we have to go."

A figure was hovering over her, blurry and unrecognisable. Kara blinked a few times and Allison's face materialized, pinched and contorted with concern. Her eyes were scanning Kara's face, wide with something that made her seem a lot younger than she was. Fear, Kara noted detachedly. But fear of what?

There was a strange ringing in her ears, like she had been exposed to a lot of noise that had abruptly ceased. Cold seeped into her back, and she realised that she was lying on the floor of…wherever she was. Allison stood back, allowing Kara to see her surroundings. A dim, dusty building, with escalators and…and floors with no railings.

"Oh my god," she gasped, lurching upright. Head spinning, she scrambled to her feet and swayed unsteadily. Allison gripped her shoulders, balancing the blonde, who looked as though she were about to throw up. Kara looked at her with wide eyes so full of pain that it tore at Allison's heart. "I'm sorry," the younger girl said softly, but Kara only shook her head and pulled away. She moved to the edge of the floor they were on and knelt down, staring at the scene below her. She could see figures retreating—she recognised Scott, with Isaac gripping his shoulders and pulling him towards the exit. Kara closed her eyes, memories flooding in. It didn't seem real. It couldn't be real. But she kept seeing him fall, kept seeing his face before he disappeared over the edge…

And a flash of blinding white light.

She whirled on Allison. "What happened after Derek—" she choked on his name and fell silent, her reeling mind unable to form words. Allison gave her a sad smile, but there was worry in her eyes. "There was this…I'm not really sure how to explain it, but I think you did something with your powers. It was like liquid fire but…maybe more like solid, golden light. It kind of came from your hands and swarmed around you, and then when it cleared you were unconscious," Allison explained. "It scared off the alpha pack. They left not long after they saw it."

Kara stared at her hands, as if expecting to see a golden substance pouring from it. "We should go," Allison said firmly, but not unkindly. "My father doesn't know I'm here, and if he found out…"

Kara nodded absentmindedly, her body moving of its own accord as it straightened up and followed Allison out of the mall, leaving without so much as a backward glance at the place where she had lost a piece of herself. A piece of hope.

The loft seemed even more dreary than usual as Kara stared numbly at the big, arched window that illuminated the room with pale, watery light. A book was perched on a chair that had been drawn up to sit next to the window. Kara's book. It seemed a lifetime ago that she had been sitting there, reading. Unaware of what was to come.

Kara rubbed her eyes groggily. She had unintentionally fallen asleep the moment that Allison had dropped her back at the loft, still drained from what had happened with her powers. She'd woken up thinking that it had all been a dream—the fight at the mall, the explosion of her powers—but it wasn't long before the memories started flooding in, bringing the sharp pang of realisation with them. She steeled herself and rose from her position on the couch, distantly wondering where Cora was—and Peter, for that matter. He had his own place, yet he hung around the loft a lot; far too much for Kara's liking. Still, she might have even preferred his presence over the eerie silence that seemed to engulf the loft. Having nothing to distract her made it too easy to think, to become lost in memories. Kara forced herself to tie up her hair into a ponytail, her arms heavy and movements sluggish.

It didn't seem real. It all seemed like a hellish dream that she would eventually wake up from and forget—the fight with the alpha pack, shooting arrows with Allison, the silence of the loft. Derek's death. She half expected him to come walking around a corner, or see him sitting on the spiral staircase.

Almost robotically, Kara picked up her phone and unlocked it. A message from Cora popped up on the screen—probably something about where she was, Kara mused. Her assumption hadn't been entirely wrong, she realised as she read the message, but there was something else in it—something that broke through the numb haze that had settled over Kara. She was still for a moment, hardly daring to believe what she had read. It was dangerous to be hopeful, she knew. Too much had been taken from her—what would it cost her to pour herself into blind hope only for it be ripped away? What would it do to her to feel that kind of loss all over again?

Still, a part of her was desperate to cling onto any shred of faith there was, so she headed out of the loft, trying not to dive too deep into the hope bubbling in her chest.

Meet at the animal clinic, Cora's text had said. Kara gripped the steering wheel tightly as she drove to the Vet, remembering when they had tried to recover Isaac's suppressed memories of the Alpha Pack. The thought of the young werewolf sent a pang through her chest. He had been there that night, when they had fought against Deucalion and the others. He had seen Derek die—had seen his alpha die, something that Kara couldn't even begin to imagine. Scott had lost him as well, as a mentor and someone who had not always done the right thing but had been there right from the beginning of Scott's introduction to the supernatural world.

But then again, they wouldn't have to mourn the loss of Derek if he wasn't dead.

Cora had said that it was only a guess—she and Peter had gone back to the mall and discovered that the bodies of Derek and Ennis were missing, meaning that one, or both of them, could be alive. A guess, Kara had to remind herself. She couldn't let her hopes rise too high; it would only end in more misery if they found out that Derek didn't make it. She could still see his face in memories that played over and over again in her head, each one bringing a fresh wave of pain. They brought frustration too—she had only known him for a short amount of time, so why was she so affected by his death? Sure, they had trained together and she had lived in his loft ever since she got to Beacon Hills, but through it all Derek had remained almost completely closed off from her. She'd only ever glimpsed the person beneath his hardened exterior a few times; a person who had been betrayed before but was still willing to make a deal with her, who had trained with her and wanted to help figure out her powers. Someone who had cared.

Kara gave a heavy sigh. Something hidden, carefully tucked away into the back of her mind surfaced, and Kara knew that she didn't have to look far for the answer. An unwilling, wary part of her had known it for a while.

Kara parked just down the street from the Vet and started towards the back entrance. With a twinge of anger, Kara made a mental note to ask Cora exactly how she had been left behind by the pack when Kara had specifically asked the younger Hale sibling to wake her up beforehand. Although she didn't want to admit it, underneath the anger there was a pang of sadness. She couldn't have meant much to the pack if they had so readily left her behind, a thought that hurt her more than it should have. There was also the matter of her deal with them—how was she supposed to fulfil her end of it and expect them to do the same if they brushed her off every time she tried to help? It made her worry about how much effort they would put into helping her find out who was responsible for her mother's death—although if Kara's unnerving suspicions were right, they wouldn't have to look far. Kara going with the pack to take down Deucalion could have been her opportunity to find out the truth, but instead she had been left behind, forgotten.

Kara increased her pace, boots angrily thudding into the pavement. She entered the car park of the clinic and peered around, looking for the familiar faces of Cora and Peter. It would have been helpful for Cora to specify exactly where they were—but after a minute of searching, Kara spotted two figures partially hidden behind a parked car. Peter and Cora whipped around as Kara approached them, her mouth set in a hard line. Cora had a strange look on her face—a mixture of guilt and hesitancy, as if there was conflict inside of her. There was something else there too, something like suspicion—although Kara couldn't imagine why. She felt a pang of sympathy for the girl beneath her anger. Kara reminded herself that Cora lost someone last night, but then Kara remembered that she had lost something that night as well—a chance to find answers, a person who had strengthened her in many ways—and she hardened, facing Cora and Peter with a steely gaze.

"So nice of you to finally join us," Peter greeted her cheerfully. Kara ignored him and turned to Cora, swallowing down her anger for the moment. There were more important matters at hand than finding out why Kara had been left behind.

"So why the animal clinic? Who's in there?" Kara asked.

"I'm not exactly sure of that, or how to get in—the building is half made out of mountain ash," Peter answered, gazing thoughtfully at the building.

Cora rolled her eyes. "Well, maybe we could do what normal people do, and knock on the door."

She started towards the clinic, but Peter caught her arm before she could go any further. Kara noticed the alert look on his face. "What is it?" she demanded, eyes flickering between Peter and the parking lot, looking for any sign of danger.

"They're here," Peter said without looking at her.

"Who?" Cora asked, frowning.

"All of them."

Kara heartbeat quickened. She knew who Peter was talking about; the alpha pack—all of them—were here, inside the clinic. And judging from the grim look on Peter's face, Kara guessed that Ennis was here as well. It made sense—Deucalion, upon finding Ennis still alive, would have brought him to Deaton, someone who knew of the supernatural world and had the skills to save Ennis. But Derek's body had been missing from the mall too—could Deucalion have taken him to animal clinic as well?

"How do we know who's in there? Is it Derek or Ennis or…both?" Cora questioned, voicing Kara's thoughts. Peter didn't have a chance to answer—the back door to the clinic suddenly swung open and out spilt a distraught-looking Kali, followed by one of the twins. Cora, Peter and Kara ducked down, pressing themselves against the side of a car to avoid being seen. Kara craned her head out as much as she dared, getting a glimpse of the two alphas. She frowned as Kali ran a hand through her hair, obviously distressed. Something had happened, and it must have bad to warrant such a reaction from the vicious alpha. Kara watched with wide eyes as Ethan—or Aiden, she couldn't tell—reached out a hand for Kali, placing it on her arm in what appeared to be a comforting manner. Kali turned away from him, then threw her head back and let out a pain-filled roar so great that it set off car alarms throughout the parking lot.

"Well I know one thing," Peter murmured as they discreetly crept away from the clinic, Kali's roar still thundering in Kara's chest. "That wasn't for Derek."

Kara surveyed the small café with only mild interest. A young, red-haired girl sat alone in a corner, her face illuminated by the screen of her laptop. Closer to Kara, an elderly couple were drinking coffee, talking between sips of the drink. The man said something to his wife and grinned proudly when she chuckled, shaking her head in mock exasperation. Something in Kara's chest ached at the sight, and a deep chasm of longing opened up beneath her. She wasn't exactly sure what she saw in them that she wanted for herself—to laugh freely like that, to have to someone to grow old with—but she knew that it was something she had been missing for a long, long time.

Kara turned her attention to the girl sitting in front of her. After leaving the animal clinic, Kara and Cora had decided to grab some lunch; mercifully, Peter didn't join them. There hadn't been much of a conversation about it really—Cora had said something about getting food, and Kara had wordlessly gone along with her. The car ride to the café had been swathed in a painfully awkward silence. Kara had meant to talk to Cora about the night before, but the words wouldn't form in her mouth. They stayed buried beneath the surface, where they burned and writhed like snakes on fire.

She met Cora's eyes; guarded as they were, they did nothing to hide the impatience brimming in the set of her face. They'd finished eating a while ago, and now Kara only had her coffee left to finish. It didn't take long before Cora cracked with sigh and finally spoke, her voice surprisingly sincere.

"I didn't want to leave you behind," Cora began, knowing what was on Kara's mind without her having to say it. "Your hip was still healing and Derek…he didn't want you to go, in case it turned bad—which it did. He asked me not to tell you because he knew you'd refuse and go anyway."

Kara stiffened. It took her a few moments just to comprehend what Cora had said, but when she did, her blood boiled with renewed fury and heat crept up her neck. Derek had no right to completely disregard her wish to go, even if he thought he was doing it for her own good. Kara had suspected that he had been the reason why she was left behind, but to hear it from Cora….A pang shot through Kara's chest, and she cursed herself for caring enough to feel the sting of betrayal that lanced through her. She hardened, feeling her anger rush to the surface once more.

"And you just went along with it? You just agreed to leave me behind?" Kara fumed, turning wide and accusing eyes on Cora, who had the good sense to look a little guilty.

"Derek was right, Kara. You would have gotten hurt."

"That's not the point! You and Derek went behind my back and stopped me from doing the only damn thing I have to do for my end of the deal."

Cora sighed. "I know I should have told you that Derek didn't want you to come, but you risking your neck to help us wasn't part of the deal."

She didn't get it. Kara hadn't just wanted to go so that she could help out—she wanted to get answers. She wanted to know why Deucalion was so interested in her and her powers, and why she felt a chill run down her spine—that had nothing to do with the fact that he was one of the most powerful werewolves she knew—every time someone mentioned his name. Kara had her suspicions about him being the alpha she was looking for, but she'd lost a precious opportunity to investigate the matter.

Kara drained the rest of her coffee and stood up.

"You know why else I wanted to go? I wanted answers. I wanted to find out what Deucalion knows about me, because I'm betting it's a lot more than I know about myself."

Cora's eyes widened a fraction. "You don't think he could be—"

"—the alpha that bit my mother? I don't know. Thanks to Derek, I didn't get the chance to ask, and who knows when I'll see Deucalion next."

Cora didn't miss the sharpness of her words or her biting tone. Derek had only wanted to keep Kara safe—for reasons Cora had yet to figure out—but she could see now, even if Kara wouldn't admit it, that it had hurt her to be lied to.

"I'm sorry," Cora said, sounding as though she struggled to get the words out. "I didn't realise…anyway, you can give Derek an earful when we find him."

Kara was surprised by her words, and even more perplexed when some of the fire burning within her seemed to subside. She wondered what Cora had been about to say before she cut herself off; what she had failed to realise.

Kara lingered for a moment, surveying the young girl's face before saying a quick goodbye and heading out of the café, Cora's words ringing in her head. When we find him. She had sounded so sure, so certain that he was alive. Why did it surprise Kara? She should be certain as well; it made sense for Derek to be alive. His body had gone missing from the mall, which meant that he had to have walked out of there—right?

Kara huffed in frustration. She knew that it made sense, that everything she had witnessed and everything she had been told pointed to Derek being alive, but she still couldn't let herself believe it. Wouldn't let herself believe it. Because if she got her hopes up and found out that he truly was dead…

It would hurt her. Badly. Badly enough that the thought sent a sharp pang of fear running through her—and Kara, despite having squashed it down and pushed it away, knew why.

She had to be sure. She had to see it with her own eyes. Apart from seeing Derek fall, the night they fought the Alpha Pack was a blurry memory in her brain, and that didn't sit well with her. But maybe if she went back….Kara steeled herself, feeling determination fill her limbs and strengthen her stride. She didn't quite know what possessed her to do it, but she hopped in her car and drove to the place where she had lost a piece of herself.

It was time for her to get it back.

Kara winced as she heard the crunch of broken glass underneath her shoe, the sound seeming to echo throughout the dim building.

Her footsteps became more careful after that, although she didn't know why she was trying to be so stealthy. As far as she knew, no one else was here—and no one else had any reason to be here. Not that Kara did either.

What had she been thinking, coming back to the abandoned mall? All that was there was broken glass, rubble, and a layer of dust that covered everything. And some nasty claw marks gouged into the concrete. Nothing of use to her—nothing that could give her the answers she needed.

Kara sighed, staring grimly at the ledge that she and Allison had shot arrows from. They had made footprints in the dust, she noticed with little interest. Her mind was on the memories that began surfacing as she inched closer to the ledge, remembering what she had seen that fateful night. She cast her eyes to the edge of the floor down below and saw Derek falling, his wide eyes locked on hers for a split second before he disappeared into nothing.

And then she had disappeared into nothing.

Kara tore her eyes away, not wanting to see that moment on replay in the place that it had happened. It felt too real. She remained near the edge of the floor, where she had stood that night, but stared at the ground. Curiosity flickered inside her and she frowned. It could have just been her eyes played tricks on her, but the ground underneath her feet seemed…different, somehow. Different to the rest of the floor. She crouched down and swiped a finger across the surface, then surveyed it with narrowed eyes.

No dust.

Kara rose slowly as she scanned the rest of the floor—and sure enough, when she looked for it she could see the slight colour difference between the dusty ground and the cleaner ground. She might have been able to brush it off as nothing if it weren't for the fact that a perfect circle of dust-free floor had been formed—and she was standing right in the centre of it.

Her memories were a little murky, but she could piece together most of what had happened after Derek had fallen from what she had seen and what Allison had told her. Being in this place helped to jog her memory, and as Kara focused she could recall seeing a bright light before fading into unconsciousness. A light that, according to Allison, had come from her. Had that been why Cora had given her an odd look? Kara had thought it was suspicion, but maybe it was something else—maybe it was uncertainty. Uncertainty of who, or what, Kara was.

She couldn't blame her. She was standing in the middle of a dust circle created by the power that had burst from her body—power that had, for whatever reason, repelled dirt and dust and left her in a neat, clean circle. Kara's eyes widened as a thought struck her. What if this power didn't just repel dust and dirt, but people as well?

A distant sound reached Kara's ears—footprints, coming from the floor below her. Her heart pounding, she slowly backed away, frantically searching for somewhere to hide. Spotting a wide pillar a few metres away, she crept to it as soundlessly as possible and hid behind it, fighting to keep her breath under control. She could still hear the slow, deliberate footsteps down below. Kara prayed that it was just a teenager who'd decided to check out the creepy, abandoned mall and not someone who posed a threat to her—like a member of Deucalion's Pack. She shuddered at the thought. If one of them was here, then she was already dead. But the footsteps continued and Kara heard nothing else. Surely if it was a member of the Alpha Pack then they would have made themselves known? Subtlety wasn't really their style, as far as Kara knew. But she had to make sure that she wasn't in any real danger, so she ever so slowly inched her face out from behind the pillar and peered at the ground below her.

It was a man. He wore dark clothing, and sported greying, closely-cropped hair. Kara caught a glimpse of his face—clean-shaven and alert, his eyebrows pulled into what looked like a permanent frown. She didn't recognise him, and her breathing eased a bit. Still, she watched him warily as he moved around the place with careful footsteps and studied the floor with narrowed eyes. He looked like he had a purpose—one that Kara intended to discover. The man bent down to study something on the floor, and as Kara squinted at it, she could see that he was looking at claw marks gouged into the concrete, accompanied by a splatter of dark blood. The stranger traced his fingers across the marks, mimicking the action of clawing at the floor. Was he wondering what had happened here, why there were bloodstains and scratches everywhere?

The man rose, then turned his attention to a section of the wall opposite him. It looked as though something—or someone—had been thrown against it, producing a gaping, jagged hole in the wall. The man turned slightly towards Kara and she caught sight of his face. Her mouth went dry. It was a masking of grim understanding, like he knew what had happened here.

The buzz of a cell phone interrupted the near-silence, startling Kara. She quickly whipped back behind the pillar, in case the stranger decided to look up in the right place. She waited with a racing heart as she heard him answer the phone, his deep, gravelly voice echoing throughout the building. She frowned, listening to his words, trying to figure out who he was talking to.

"Do you want me to come pick you up? I don't mind a late night drive."

A kid, Kara guessed from the tone of his voice. It was concerned. Caring. Different to what she had expected to come from a man with his face. No matter how hard Kara listened, she couldn't hear more than an indecipherable string of words from the other end of the call.

"Did the school pay for that?" the man questioned. Definitely a kid then. Probably a high school student, if they were staying overnight somewhere. And if they had a phone. "What's it called?" the man continued, and the teen at the other end of the call answered, their words inaudible to Kara. "It uh, sounds familiar. Listen, sweetheart, I'm gonna hop in the car and come get you guys."

A daughter, then. Something niggled at the back of Kara's mind, but she ignored it, focusing on the conversation.

"If there's something you feel like you can't tell me, I just want you to know you can talk to me. We don't have to keep anything from each other, Allison."

Oh. Surprise jolted through Kara's body, and she cursed herself for not realising it sooner. The man standing below her was Allison's father, another werewolf hunter—but what was he doing here?

He must have somehow known about the fight that took place here, and based on what he had said to Allison on the phone, Kara suspected that he knew she was involved somehow. Kara dared a glance down below. Allison's father was studying a mark on a concrete pillar, the sight of it uprooting a memory in Kara's mind. It was where a flash-bang arrow had hit, taking a chunk out of the pillar and leaving soot on the concrete. Evidence of Allison's involvement.

Kara felt a distant, itching in her nose. Oh no. She cursed internally, damning the dusty and dirty building, and braced herself for what would inevitably happen. When the sneeze came, she managed to stifle it as best as she could, but it wasn't quite silent. Kara went still, hardly daring to breathe. She hoped that the hunter had missed the noise.

Kara waited for what seemed like an eternity. The building went eerily quiet, save for the drip of water somewhere nearby. No footsteps sounded. There was nothing. Kara could hear her pulse in her ears, a constant thrum picking up speed as the minutes went by. Had Allison's father left? She wanted to check, but stayed frozen in place, not wanting to be discovered. She waited another minute before carefully peering out from behind the pillar at the floor below her. There was no sign of the hunter, and Kara didn't know whether to be relieved or alarmed. A quick scan of the space around her told her that he wasn't up here and if he wasn't on the floor below…Kara listened to the quiet for a few moments, then stepped out of her hiding place.

"Turned around and face me. Slowly."

Fear struck Kara's heart. Shit. Shit. How had he managed to sneak up on her like this? How had she not heard him? She carefully lifted her palms and turned around, making it clear that she had nothing to hurt him with. Not that she could hurt him, with a silver gun pointed straight at her head. Kara faced the hunter, fighting to keep the fear from her face. She glanced nervously at the gun, poised right between her eyes.

"Who are you?" the hunter questioned her, his voice completely different to when he had been talking to his daughter. Then, it had been concerned, caring. Now it was cold and blunt, shaped by years of training and the things he had seen and done.

"Kara Grayson," she replied, trying not to let fear warp the strength of her voice. He was just a man, she reminded herself. Yeah, a man who also happened to be a trained werewolf hunter with a gun pointed straight at my face.

His face showed no flicker of recognition. Allison wouldn't have mentioned her to him because of her wish to keep her involvement with the supernatural world a secret, but Kara supposed that didn't matter now. He already knew.

"I'm a friend of Scott McCall's. And I know Allison," she added quietly, wondering if it was the right thing to say.

Kara saw his grip on the gun tighten. "How do you know my daughter."

She swallowed at the dangerous tone of his voice. "I came to Beacon Hills looking for answers. My mother was killed—she'd been bitten by an alpha, and I'm trying to find out who it was," Her voice caught on the last sentence, and she could have sworn that she saw sympathy flicker in the hunter's eyes. "I made a deal with Scott and Derek Hale,"—the hunter frowned at that—"and in return for their help I would help them with the…supernatural problems in this town."

"How does my daughter fit into that?"

"I think you know," Kara said quietly, not expecting to hear a small, resigned sigh from the man. Kara frowned, eyeing the gun. She cleared her throat and made a show of displaying her bare hands, and the hunter reluctantly lowered his gun. Despite doing so, his eyes still held caution as he surveyed her, looking for any potential threats. Not that there were any. At least, Kara thought, not until she figured out her powers.

The hunter jerked his head to the floor below them. "Do you know what happened here?"

"I thought you already knew."

"I know what not who."

Meaning that he knew that it was werewolves, but not which werewolves. Kara narrowed her eyes. It was one thing to tell him who she was—Kara didn't see how he could use that against her—but would it be wise to tell him about the Alpha pack? Did she trust him enough? He was Allison's father, she supposed, but parents didn't always side with their kids.

"I don't know much about them yet," Kara said, choosing her words carefully, "but I know that they're a pack made up entirely of Alphas. I think they came to Beacon Hills to…recruit."

A deep frown appeared on the hunter's face at her words. Technically, Kara wasn't lying—she didn't actually know that much about them, but it was more than she was letting on. Like who they were, and who they were after.

Chris Argent scanned the face of the girl before him. He wasn't sure exactly how old she was, but she couldn't have been much older than Allison. It angered him that someone that young had experienced the tragedy that werewolves could bring—yet here she was, trusting the species that had killed her mother. He didn't know whether that made her brave or naïve. Maybe both.

Kara raised her eyebrows slightly as the hunter gave her a look that she could not decipher. He glanced below, to the pillar that had been hit by a flash-bang arrow.

"I haven't known her for long, but I do know that Allison can't just stay out of all this. Not when the lives of her friends are at stake," Kara said, feeling the need to defend Allison. She'd helped her when Kara had needed it most.

The hunter shot her a sharp look, but something in his eyes had changed. Some part of him knew that this stranger, this person who knew Allison, was right. And it scared him.

He turned to leave the mall, but hesitated as he was about to head down the stationary escalator. "As soon as I know enough information, I can start tracking them," he said, not quite sure why he was telling her this. She nodded, and a part of her was relieved to know that there was someone else looking into the Alpha Pack. She probably should have told him more about them, but she had a feeling he would find out soon enough.

Without looking at her, the hunter said, "I hope you know what you're doing."

I hope so too, Kara thought as he disappeared from her view.

A/N:

Since I haven't updated in a while, here's an extra-long chapter for you to enjoy :)