A/N: So, we start this off with the first look into Seph's mind...I'll pretty much be switching between the two from now on and possibly another new character in the next few chappies...dun dun dun.

Tyler: A new female character?

Tink: Possibly.

Reid: Sounds like Baby Boy might lose his V card after all.

Lux: Reid...

Reid: Sorry, Minx.

Pogue: Somebody's whipped.

Caleb: And you aren't?

Tink: Anyway off we go. Oh and I don't own any right to The Covenant...no brainer there but I figured I had better say it.

Chapter Five: Bargains and Chances

Seph P.O.V.

I couldn't believe I had made such a stupid fucking mistake all because some little jealous bitch had slapped me. I looked over at Lux silently begging her to help me in some way. If one of us didn't think of something quick we were all royally fucked and not in the good way.

"Shit, Kate I'm sorry. Some asshole knocked into me," Reid lied as he popped up and made it seem like he'd been there the entire time. I liked the guy already.

"What the fuck ever, Reid," Kate snapped and then stomped off away from us.

"We need to get the hell outta here before somebody questions Reid's story," Pogue told us in a hushed tone.

"Minx'll come with me and Baby Boy. Pogo, you'd better take Seph with you until shit cools down," Reid suggested.

I nodded and dangled my keys in front of Pogue's face. He went to grab them but I yanked them out of his reach and made a mad dash for the door. He was right behind me when I jumped into my car. I screeched the tires and fish tailed it as I left the parking lot.

"Make a right up here," Pogue yelled over the wind.

I hung a right where he had told me to on a dirt road that led into the woods. I slammed on the brakes when the road suddenly ended. I looked over at Pogue but he was already out of the car. I climbed out after turning the engine off but leaving the radio on and just stared at him. He was standing underneath the moonlight with his head tilted up to the sky and his eyes closed. He was, for lack of a better word, beautiful.

Kissing You by Des'ree started to play over the speakers and he turned to me holding his hand out. I accepted it and he pulled me close against him. As we started to sway to the music I bit my bottom lip and laid my head down on his shoulder. He held our joined hands against his chest and I could feel his heart beating like it was going to burst out at any second.

"I won't let anything happen to you, no matter what. You will always be safe with me," he whispered.

I pulled back and looked into his eyes wanting to believe him but I couldn't. There were things he didn't know about me, things that would never allow me to get close to him. He deserved better than that. I placed my palm against his cheek as we continued to dance in the middle of the woods and smiled sadly.

"Don't fall for me, Pogue. I promise that you will regret it," I told him sternly.

"How can't I? You're everything I've ever wanted in a girl, you're perfect," he argued.

"You don't even know me," I responded as I stepped away from him and wrapped my arms around myself.

"I know enough to know that this," he gestured between himself and me, "isn't a mistake and I wouldn't regret."

I wanted to believe everything that he was saying but I just couldn't. I wished that I could make him understand somehow that nothing could ever come of us. It was pointless for us to even try.

"I don't belong here, eventually I will go home. What then?" I asked.

"We'll figure something out, I'll wait for however long I have to if that's what it takes," he answered. He wasn't making this any easier on me.

I turned away from him because I couldn't think with him looking at me like that. I wasn't worried about him hurting me, I knew he wouldn't but I was positive that I would hurt him. It was what I was good at. I always ran, it was just how I was and had been for a long time. I couldn't do that, not to Pogue. I turned back ready to tell him my story but there was no sign of him anywhere.

"Pogue?" I called out into the now threatening trees.

No answer.

"Missing someone?" a voice asked from the darkness behind me.

I spun to see someone standing over a motionless Pogue who was lying face down in the dirt. Before I could stop myself I screamed and was quickly thrown into a nearby tree. I slowly lifted my head up and tried to call out to Pogue but everything faded to black before I got the chance.

Lux P.O.V.

I was making out with Reid on the bed in his dorm room and totally getting into it when my cell went off. He groaned and sprawled out on his back in a very dramatic way that made me giggle. Poor boy. I checked the caller I.D. quickly before answering.

"Great timing you've got, Seph," I said as a greeting.

"Little Red Riding Hood got lost in the woods with the Big Bad Wolf," a chilling voice answered on the other end.

"What have you done to her?" I asked in a deadly voice that made Reid jump up to a sitting position.

"She isn't the only one I've caught in my web, Daughter of Ipswich," they responded.

"If you hurt either one of them I swear I'll-," I started but was cut off.

"Temper, temper. I assure you that they're still breathing, for now," they responded.

"Where are they?" I demanded.

"Now there's a riddle. Where do all injured go?" he asked and then the line went dead.

"What's wrong?" Reid asked as he laid a hand on my shoulder.

"Pogue and Seph are in the hospital," I stated flatly.

Reid and I arrived within ten minutes, record time in my opinion. I practically ran to the front desk making the poor lady behind the computer almost fall out of her chair.

"Pogue Parry and Persephone Crowe," I rushed out. Reid wrapped his arms around me from behind and pulled me to his chest trying to comfort me.

"Are you family?" the receptionist asked. I really didn't have time for this bullshit!

"I'm his brother, Reid Garwin," Reid answered from behind me. My hero.

The woman typed a few things into the computer before nodding to herself.

"Rooms three fifteen and three sixteen. You'll want to take the elevator up to the third floor to the recovery-," whatever she was going to say we didn't hear because we both darted for the elevators at the same time. It couldn't be that damn hard to find.

When the elevator finally came to a stop we both ran out of it and sprinted down the long corridor drawing a lot of attention but I'm pretty damn sure neither one of us gave a shit at that point in time. We came to a dead stop in front of three fifteen. I carefully poked my head inside and found it to be Pogue's room. Reid gave me a nudge toward the door next to the one we were standing in front of and then entered. I took the hint and made my way to Seph's room scared out of my mind of what I might find.

They had her hooked up to so many machines I couldn't have counted all of them if I would have tried. I slowly made my way over to her bed, pulled up a chair to sit in and gently took her hand in mine. Her eyes were closed and she appeared to be fast asleep so I took the time to look her over. She was covered in bruises, everywhere I looked I saw black and blue on her normally flawless skin. She had some gauze across her forehead where I could only assume a large gash must have been. Her lip was busted on the bottom and she had a pretty ugly looking shiner.

"Guess I won't be entering any beauty pageants eh?" her voice came out weak but it was enough to get my attention. I looked up and offered her a small smile.

"You're still B-E-A-utiful," I told her. She tried to smile back at me but ended up wincing in pain instead.

"How's Pogue? Is he alright?" she asked with a touch of panic to her voice.

"I don't know yet, Reid's with him right now next door," I answered.

"I'm going to kill that bastard," she growled.

"I know who he is, the one that did this to you and I'll make damn sure he pays," I promised her.

"Who is he?" she questioned. I didn't want to tell her yet but after what she'd been through she deserved to know.

"He goes by Chase Collins but I highly doubt that's his real name, I think he's a descendant of John Putnam," I informed her.

"Collins? Lux remember when I told our history to the Sons?" I nodded. "Collins was the fifth family from our side. They all supposedly died off though. I don't think this could possibly be a coincidence however."

"Is there anyway that the Collins bloodline could have continued without you knowing?" I asked, really not liking where the conversation was going.

"Oh, definitely. It's not like we kept tabs on them or anything, our ancestors just assumed that they had died off. It's not really spoken of a lot in our Book come to think of it, it just says, "Until they paid the ultimate price." so we always assumed that meant they died off," she explained. I thought on it for a minute until an idea popped into my head, call it an epiphany.

"Dying wouldn't be the ultimate price, living without the Power would be," I whispered but she seemed to hear me. We both stared at each other just letting that sink in.

"That would mean they had the Power stripped from them which would take a lot of strength to accomplish," she started.

"Which would mean all four of the other families would have had to do it together just like they did with the Sons," I finished.

"If that is what happened and it certainly makes a lot of sense then our ancestors kept a seriously huge secret from all of us that we should have been told about. We've known about the Sons since we turned thirteen and first got the Power so why not the Collins?" she asked but I didn't have an answer for her.

"Are you positive Raph and Gabe don't know? I mean they are the oldest and have already Ascended," I tried, attempting to find something, anything.

"There's no way they could keep something that big from the rest of us," she answered.

"What are the odds that a Blood descendant and a Sons descendant could possibly meet up and plot against both sides to get both of their revenge?" I wondered out loud.

"Kill two birds with one stone," Seph muttered.

We both looked up at each with shock in our eyes. Holy crow! This was way worse than I thought.

After convincing Seph to cover for me, which took forever, I slipped out of the hospital with her keys safely in my pocket. I knew that if I had told anyone my plan they would have quickly objected so I chose simply not to tell them. Seph thought I was just going to do some research in the Book of Damnation and I had no idea what excuse she was going to give Reid but she had better make it damn good for him to believe it.

I slid into her car, cranked the engine and headed off down the road. The only thing I could hope was that I wasn't rushing off to my own funeral, I just knew that Caleb would never forgive me if I went and got myself killed. Then, there was Reid. I couldn't go somewhere that he couldn't follow, I couldn't imagine being without him even in the afterlife. I needed him by my side, always.

I pulled up in front of the old Putnam barn and carefully climbed out after shutting off the engine. I could immediately sense him and knew my instincts had been right. He was the fifth bloodline and his name sure as hell wasn't Collins. I made my way slowly over to the open barn door and slipped inside. It looked like nobody had been inside in years, which was probably true.

"Well, well, well. First, a Son and a Blood and now I catch a Daughter who came willingly into my web, it certainly is my lucky night," Chase said as he stepped from the shadows and into the light.

"I've come to make a bargain with you, a trade if you will," I told him and took a step closer.

"What are you offering and what am I exchanging?" he asked.

"I offer myself in exchange for the lives of the Sons and Bloods," I answered.

He paced around a bit while tapping his chin thoughtfully with his index finger. When he finally stopped he turned to me with an evil smirk.

"Very well, in exchange for you I will spare their lives but you will assist me in torturing them a bit before I leave them alone completely," he bargained.

"In other words you want me to make them believe I chose you over them," I stated.

"My you are the clever one," he noted as he mockingly applauded me.

"That would ruin them!" I spat.

"You only bargained for their lives, you never said what sort of condition their lives had to be in. Now, going once! Going twice!"

"Fine! I'll do it."

Now I knew exactly how Persephone in Greek Mythology had felt when Hades stole her away to the Underworld and forced her into marriage.

The next day I arrived at Spencer Academy in Seph's car with Chase in the passenger seat. Just looking at him made my stomach turn. My first day at the school and I was already in Hell. I was supposed to be walking in with Reid's arm protectively around me not with his reminding me of the deal I had struck with the devil himself.

"Just remember, Pet that if I see you give the smallest hint to them the deal is off," he whispered in my ear as we were almost to the front doors.

"I gave my word," I replied in the same dull voice that had been coming out of my mouth since the very life had been sucked out of me.

"Good girl," he mocked with a pat to my ass that made me want to squirm but I held the urge back...barely. I would have seriously rather dealt with Aaron Abbot than Chase's slimy self any day.

Just as we walked through the doors I saw the three people I had been dreading to see most in the world. Caleb, Tyler and Reid. They looked really worried, like they were waiting for someone, like they were worried and waiting for me. My heart picked up pace as Reid's eyes caught mine but Chase's grip on my waist tightened, reminding me that I had a role to play. I made a look of indifference spread across my facial features, held my head high and looked down my nose at all those that we passed. While inside my heart was shattering.

"Lux! What the hell are you doing with him?" Caleb growled when we got close enough to them.

"She's with me now if you can't tell," Chase answered for me. That had been part of the deal, I would only speak to them when it was necessary, when it would do the most damage. I really hoped that for once Reid would keep his mouth shut.

"Is that true?" Reid asked and I could hear the hurt in his voice. Damn it! I held the tears back as I looked him dead in the eyes praying that he would see the truth somehow.

"It was fun while it lasted, Garwin. I mean, with a reputation like yours I just had to take you for a spin and see how the ride was for myself," I replied with a smirk.

"We looked for you all damn night! Pogue tried getting out of the hospital just to come find you!" Tyler yelled and tried to come at me but Caleb threw an arm across his chest holding him back.

"I can't believe I fucking trusted you! You really are a whore you know that?" Reid spat and I saw my chance. I lunged at him and pushed him against some lockers nearby with my hands wrapped just tight enough around his throat to seem believable and made damn sure my mouth was close to his ear.

"Just because I act like I don't give a shit doesn't mean-," I tried but Chase yanked me away from him.

"That's quite enough, Pet. I believe you taught him a lesson," Chase praised sounding all too pleased. He pulled me down the hallway away from them but I wasn't done.

"I don't! You arrogant son of a bitch you really are as stupid as people think you are if you can't figure out that I am the minx you always said I was," I yelled down to Reid. Before I could see his reaction Chase pulled me around a corner and away from my heart.

Seph P.O.V.

I carefully peaked around the corner to make sure none of those hags from hell or better known as nurses were around. When I saw that the coast was clear I darted from my room making sure that the door was shut behind me and rushed into the one next to me. I looked over at the figure lying on the bed not moving and felt a lump form in my throat. Man the guy had really gotten to me, I just wasn't the emotional type.

I lowered myself down on the edge of the bed next to him and brushed away the hair that had fallen over his eyes. I would have given anything for him to open those eyes and look up at me. Reid had told me that he had been awake earlier and had even been fighting to get out but that didn't make me feel any better. If I had only been strong, if I had protected him in those woods when I had the chance maybe things wouldn't have been as bad as they were.

"You know I never thought I would end up like this. Numb and cold. I used to be so willing to open my heart up to just about anyone that came along until...," I started to explain but it just didn't feel right telling him my story when he couldn't even hear me.

"Until what?" My eyes focused back on his face to see him looking back up at me pleadingly.

"Until my being that way almost cost someone their life. About two years ago I was dating this guy and it was going great or so I thought. He got drunk one night and ended up back handing me across my cheek. He apologized the next day when he had sobered up of course and I forgave him. The next time he got drunk he did it again. It started out that he would only beat on me when he was drinking but then he started just doing it. I would Use and cover up the marks so that my brothers wouldn't find out but eventually Raph caught me before I could hide them. He told the others and they went after the guy. They beat the leaving shit out him but Raph...Raph took it too far," I told him.

"Go on," he said encouragingly and took my head in his.

"Raph got so beyond pissed off just looking at the guy that he Used. He hit the guy so hard that he sent him right into a coma. After that everything changed. Raph became this person that we didn't even know, he used to be a lot like Mikey, always laughing but after that he just became so serious and stern about everything. While I just couldn't ever trust myself enough to let anyone else get that close to me again," I explained.

"It wasn't your fault and it wasn't his either. If it would have been me I probably would have done the same thing he did," he responded and gave my hand a light squeeze.

I slowly leaned forward and carefully laid my head down on his chest. His heartbeat was like a symphony to my ears. He wrapped his arms around me as best he could without causing himself any pain.

"I thought you were dead," I whispered and clung to him even more.

"Hardly. I still have to make you love me don't I?" he asked which brought a smile to my face.

"Bet your ass you do," I answered.

"Just let me try, give me the choice please," he murmured against my hair.

"It's a bit late now," I replied as I sat up and looked down at him. He gave me a confused look so I explained, "I obviously already care about you which means you've already weaseled your way in somehow."

He reached up and brushed his fingertips along my cheek in an adoring way. I grabbed his hand in both of mine and held his palm to the side of my face, closing my eyes as a single tear fell. It was the first tear that had fallen from my eyes in two years and it was all because of a guy I had just met. Fate was a sick bitch.

"You nearly crossed the line today and it's only the first day, Pet," Chase scolded as we stood in what I could only assume was his bedroom.

He had Used to bring the both of us there the second the final bell had rung. Something told me that he was afraid of the Sons finding out about what he was doing to me. He had remained silent for a good ten minutes up until now.

"I only did what you told me to," I spat in reply. Now that I was alone with him I no longer had to wear that mask and it felt fabulous.

"You tried to slip a message to Garwin but it won't work, he really is as stupid as they all say after all. You would have been better off trying with your brother," he said as he began that damned pacing again.

"They'll figure it out eventually, especially when Seph gets out of the hospital. She knows me better than anyone and after they do find out the devil himself won't be able to save you," I threatened. He raised his hand as if to strike me and I flinched but the blow never came. I cautiously looked back at him after I saw him lower his arm out of the corner of my eye.

"The next time my hand flies on it's own I won't bother to control it," he warned. When was I ever one to take a hint and not push people? If you answered never, you're right!

"You disgust me! If you think for one second that I would ever fucking touch you if it didn't mean the ones I loved would remain safe then you're even crazier than I thought!" I yelled at him and then spat right on his cheek. Now that felt pretty damn good until my back made contact with the wall.

He pinned me with there with his Power by my throat, choking me until I was gasping for air and clawing at my neck. I watched as he rubbed the spit off on his shoulder and then came to stand right in front of me with his eyes black as pitch.

"That wasn't very lady like now was it? I believe you are in desperate need of a lesson in manners, Pet," he scolded and sent me flying into the opposite wall once again holding me there by the throat. My vision blurred for a moment from the blow to my head but I quickly shook it off.

"Fuck...off!" I managed to get out which only seemed to amuse him.

"You know I don't think this sort of punishment is working on you. Perhaps I should go and fetch you some company," the sick bastard said and then dropped me roughly to the floor.

I got on all fours and choked on the air rushing to my lungs. When his words sank in I made a move to get up and stop him but he was already gone. I knew exactly who he meant by 'company'. The person that I wouldn't allow anything to happen to, the one that I would do anything for just so they wouldn't get harmed. Reid.

Gotta love that sick evil bastard known as Chase Collins. So, poor Lux is stuck being a willing prisoner, Seph might just be getting closer to Pogue than she had planned and Reid might be the next to be caught in the web. I didn't forget about my other gorgeous boys, they'll be back soon...maybe. Review time!

Tyler: Thank you again QueenofWeird1995, it's tempting but the Authoress might be bringing in a female for me so I believe it best to stick around and remain on her good side.

Tink: Smart thinking, Baby Boy.

Caleb: Thanks to jcvampirebat, we're glad to hear that you're loving the story.

Percy: Thank you ever so much DamonANDStark, couldn't help but notice you're a Damon fan so I figured I'd be the one to do the thanking being as he and I look so much a like. ::winks::

Tink: and Stark is a major hottie might I add, love him.

Reid: Thank you once again Cityoffire101 I'm glad you enjoy my comments and I agree Baby Boy needs to get laid.

Lux: Reid Garwin!

Reid: Shit! Gotta go!

Tink: Well, that's it until next time. I know I haven't mentioned it before but I do like getting reviews. Just saying. Lots of hits but few reviews...it only takes two seconds and you even get thanked by one of my charming gorgeous muses.