Author's Note: Hey guys! I know I promised I'd post this faster, but I was having some computer troubles, and…well, you know how it goes. Shit happens!

Anyways, I'd like to give a huge shoutout to all of you guys! This story has been favourited/ story alert-ed over 250 times! I feel that this is a HUGE accomplishment, and I owe it all to you guys for sticking with me and inspiring me throughout this whole process. Give yourselves a pat on the back!

And, because a pat in the back is a sucky prize (or at least I always thought so, I mean, common!) your consolation is this: I am officially starting work on the lemon.

You didn't read that wrong! I'm gunna start work on the lemon, which, as I promised, will be included somewhere in the next few chapters. Sound good? I knew it would!

That's all for today! Enjoy the chapter (you deserve it!).

PS. Christina says thank you to everyone who wished her well! She is officially recovering at the moment, and she's doing great.

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Disclaimer: Steph & Christina have managed to dig their way out of the asylum Shwashank- style. They meet up in the forest to plot their revenge.

Steph: Those bastards are gunna pay for what they did to us!

Christina: Yeah! They thought they could just throw us away like yesterday's trash, but we're gunna show them!

Steph: Yeah! They thought they could tell me I didn't own Darkest Powers, but we're gunna show them!

Christina: Show 'em what? You don't own Darkest Powers!

Steph: *Glares and smiles*
Are you sure we should be getting into this here? We're in a dark forest at night, after all.

Christina: *Nervous and scared*
Let's not start this again, okay? Let's save it for the guys! Okay?
*Smiles nervously*

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Hesitation

Chloe POV

I couldn't believe our luck! Right when we had been on the verge of giving up, we had found the place.

I also couldn't believe that something so evil was occurring undetected inside a Wal-Mart, but I had learned long ago that looks could be deceiving….

Tori had apparently already gotten over the shock, because she rushed forward and grabbed the handle of the 'employees only' door.

"Tori, wait!" I called to her frantically. "You can't just go rushing into this! We're not prepared! We have no idea what to expect!"

"I'm tired of hesitating, Chloe! Let's just do this!" She pumped her fist like a football player, and I choked back a laugh.

"What are you so afraid of, anyways?" she added as an afterthought. "We have our powers to protect us!"

She's right you know. What are you so afraid of? You should be charging in thereto save your- oh, wait. He's not your boyfriend anymore, is he?

And that was exactly it; bullseye, right on the money. Tori's words from before- although I was pretty sure she hadn't meant them- were fresh in my mind. She had made some really good points…and what had I been able to counter them with?

Nothing at all, because- although I hated to admit it- she was right.

What if Derek really had decided to just…leave? Was it really such an impossible concept to grasp…?

Part of me wouldn't; couldn't forget his words from that night…

"I'm leaving. There's nothing for me here- I'm better off joining the Pack."

"You can't be serious."

"I am. I'm tired of running from the Edison Group; it's not my fight. They wanted to throw me to the Pack, so I'm better off just going willingly. Then they have nothing on me."

"Nothing..? What about finding your dad? What about helping us avenge the deaths of all those innocent supernaturals?!"

"Not my problem," he grumbled.

"NOT YOUR PROBLEM? YOU WERE THE ONE WHO GOT US INTO THIS!"

"No, I didn't. I just told you what you were. You didn't have to listen to me- that was your choice."

"What about me?"

"We can't do this anymore, Chloe. I'm too dangerous, and… it's not right. It's unethical! Werewolves are only supposed to mate with werewolves, end of story. No exceptions. It was wrong of me to lead you on and lie like that. I really hope you can forgive me."

He had hurt me, destroyed me- broken me beyond repair. Could it really all have been an act…?

And that was why I was hesitating; not because we weren't prepared, not because I was unsure of what our course of action should be…

No. I was hesitating because I was scared- scared to death about what lay waiting inside this seemingly ordinary building, because I wasn't ready to face either scenario.

They both involved pain and heartbreak.

One the one hand, we could find Derek bloodied and broken, clinging to life by a withered thread. Could I possibly handle such a thing? I had seen him at his worst, weak and vulnerable during his partial Changes…but this? This was something entirely different.

And on the other hand? Well, that one meant pain and heartbreak for me. Would I be able to face him again after all he'd done, if I found him alive and well?

I honestly didn't know.

Did I still love him?

Of course- with every fibre of my being. Every follicle, every cell, every part of me knew it, too. But would I be able to handle seeing him happy without me? Could I handle that kind of betrayal?

I allowed my thoughts to drift back to that moment after he had confessed it all to me.

"Chloe?"

"Yeah?"

"I love you."

He had said it simply, but his words had been so devastatingly sincere…could he have been faking then? Was he capable of such blasphemy?

Of course not! Stop it, will you? That was probably the happiest moment of your entire life, and now you want to second-guess and over-analyze everything about it? Are you stupid or something?

No! I responded, defensively. But he left…

Do you really think he would just abandon Simon? Did you really think he would just give up on his father? Did you actually think those dreams were just dreams?

Arguing with myself was getting me nowhere, and my inner voice couldn't seem to keep its loyalties straight.

Geez! Can you just pick a side, already? You're being about as helpful as Tori on PMS!

OK, here's me picking a side: stop acting like such a brat!

Huh?

Yeah, you heard me! All you're thinking about is yourself! Has it ever occurred to you that Derek may be fighting for his life while you stand here hesitating because you're afraid of what this'll do to you?! Pull your head outta your ass and smell the death and destruction, sweetheart! This isn't about YOU!

Well I'll be damned. It's one thing when your conscience speaks to you, and another when you talk back…but when it starts lecturing you on being a self-centered coward? That's when you know there's some crazy shit happening…especially when you can't deny that it's right.

"You're right, Tori. Enough is enough," I finally agreed.

She nodded, as if I hadn't skipped a beat. The lengthy conversation I had enjoyed with my conscience must've taken less time than I'd originally thought.

Simon finally spoke. "Guys, I'm all for rescuing my brother, but Chloe was right before- we need to put up some defensive spells before we go storming in there…" He was thoughtful for a moment. "We should also find a way to evacuate everyone in the store, if that's possible. The less people around, the better."

"Yeah, sure. Whatever you say, Simon," Tori agreed.

We got to work.

Tori and Simon put up a sort of magical force-field, telling me it would keep us and any other supernatural in while allowing civilians out.

With nothing else to do, I sat down and focused, trying to see if I could detect anything coming from inside. I wasn't sure if my new-found abilities were limited to my dreams, or if they were only present due to my worry over Derek.

I concentrated for a few moments, trying to tap into the energy around me like I was supposed to have learned to do. There was definitely something coming from inside, some weird energy that caused my stomach to churn with nausea.

It was a familiar feeling- something I had experienced before- but I couldn't remember where, when, or why I had ever felt this way...

My gut was telling me it wasn't something I wanted to remember.

"Chloe! We're ready! Let's go!"

Tori's voice pulled me out of my trance. "Are you sure?"

"Yeah. We casted that spell and a few others… We should be okay."

I felt it unnecessary to point out that "should" was the operative word in this situation, but decided against it. It was time for action, time to put my concern for myself second to the concern I felt for the people I loved.

I pulled open the back door and slid myself through the narrow space, finally ready to face what lay ahead.

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Author's Note: My gosh guys, I just watched Silence of the Lambs while writing this, and….my gosh, I'll never be the same again.

Anyways, there's part two, guys! Hope you liked it! If you leave twenty reviews, I'll recover faster :) And don't forget, I'm now working on the lemon!