Chapter 14: Operation: Kill Scott McCall, the Thrilling Conclusion
I ran a hand through my hair in an effort to wipe away the sweat clinging to my forehead from the events that had just occurred. Sighing, I locked eyes with an equally tense Stiles.
"We can't stay here," I started, "If this really is the benefactor, we should be down in the morgue with Scott." Stiles simply nodded in agreement and went back to the computers. He started closing each of them before shoving them all into a backpack that was nestled in the corner of the room. Stiles then unplugged all the wires that were tangled together and stuffed them into the same bag. He zipped it up in record time and proceeded to usher me out the door.
We hastily walked down the hallways to the staircase. It was particularly easy to escape the attention of the doctor's and nurses, who were currently panicking over the power outage. When we got to the stairwell, it was considerably darker than the reasonably lit hallways, so I opted to pull out my phone's flashlight to light the way for us as we made our descent.
"You know what I don't understand?" Stiles pondered aloud as we passed the second floor, and I sighed.
"The basics of a relationship," I retorted before flinching, "Sorry, off task."
"No, that's kind of what I'm not understanding," Stiles murmured. We didn't need to talk terribly loud, as the acoustics in the stairwell were off the charts. Stiles' voice echoed even if he was talking quietly. "I don't get why you offered to help us if you're so mad at me."
I paused in my stride, and felt Stiles nearly stumble in an effort to not collide with me. "I may be furious beyond belief with you, but I'm not about to let that impede on our attempts at saving everybody. The last time I did that Boyd died, remember?"
There was a quiet while we kept walking until he spoke up again, "I mean romantic feelings. I'm distracted by you all the time, how come you never seem to be distracted by me, fighting or not?"
I almost smiled at his comment, "Stiles you're always distracted by something, are you sure you're distracted by me?"
Going along with the banter, he replied, "Nope, pretty sure you're a different kind of distraction."
I frowned when I thought about it, "Distracted by you, mad at you, what I do to help the pack directly affects you and my friends. I'm not the kind of girl who's going to put her feelings and relationship over certain things like the supernatural."
"So even if we were getting along, you'd sideline me?" I let out a genuine laugh at his remark and opened the door to the well lit basement. Stuffing my phone away, I read the signs that directed hospital employees to the morgue.
"You're not getting what I'm saying," I insisted, "I just mean, my relationship with you is extremely important to me, but I'm not going to let it consume my every waking thought. I have stuff to do, you know? I would expect you to feel the same way."
We walked into the morgue and I froze just out of reach of the swinging doors that separated us from the outside. There Scott was, lying seemingly dead as a doornail on a slab that was meant for cadavers, not for my friends. His hispanic complexion had dulled into a truly horrifying pallor, and his chest did not rise and fall in a comforting manner. I wouldn't admit it, but I was thankful when Stiles laced his fingers through my own and squeezed gently. He guided me forward into the room and set his stuff down.
Not wanting to see Scott in that position any longer than I had to, I spoke to Stiles. "We need to find Argent, he should be down here with us."
Stiles agreed and we walked outside of the morgue and down the main hall back to the stairs. He pulled out his phone and scrolled through his contacts while I noticed a figure clad in black leather just straight ahead. Walking slightly faster, I rounded the corner only to have Chris Argent himself whirl around, brandishing a gun directly in my face.
On instinct, when I felt Stiles collide with my back, I shoved him behind me. In the several seconds it took for me to regain my composure, Argent lowered his weapon. Stiles skirted around me and I could see on his face that he recalled the very similar incident that happened merely two days prior.
"The power's out in the whole building, we lost all the cameras," Stiles informed Argent in a shaky voice.
Argent nodded and glanced down the hallway we just arrived from. "Stay with Scott," he instructed, eyes wide and alert. "Text me if you see or hear anything." He hastily checked his watch and we all glanced at the eighteen minutes staring us in the face. Argent, Stiles, and I all shared the same dreadful gaze before Argent turned and left to go find the source of whatever was causing the blackout.
Much to our satisfaction and dismay, Scott was in the very same place where we left him, which was believably dead. I leaned against a table that contained medical tools and drawers of medicine while Stiles took to pacing the floor. The whole scene reminded me of Mexico sans Malia and I sighed.
"I wish I could do more," I admitted and Stiles stopped pacing to look at me.
"I'm sorry, are you talking to me?"
"Who else would I be talking to? The only other visible person in this room is next to dead."
"I thought you were mad at me, that's all," He confessed.
"Don't make me regret venting to you," I grumbled and Stiles straightened up.
"No, no, sorry - uh - what do you mean do more? You're a witch, you do plenty."
"I don't know how to stop the berserkers, I've nearly died coming up against them every time. What if that's what Kira and Liam are facing on the roof? I'd have no way of helping them," I resided to curling into myself and fiddling with my hands when I heard Stiles sigh.
"You'll figure it out, June. You always figure stuff out without a problem. Like how you helped me the other day with expanding and simplifying trigonometric functions, how you figured out how Malia studies best-"
"That's academic, Stiles. I've known that stuff for years. I mean figuring out stuff like who the darach is, or how to get a nogitsune out of your fucking mind, or how to stop a berserker. Or how to catch a benefactor, or crack a code that lists all of our names, or who is assassinating people. I can never figure that stuff out, it's always you figuring that out. What you solve matters, Stiles. It impacts people's lives and affects entire towns, I just figure stuff out that people who came way before me already know. I just - I mean I can't even figure out how to deal with my magic. This new ability is wigging me out big time. Is it the Sight? Is it empathy? Is it just plain fucking weird? I don't even know."
"Hey, math matters, alright? It's good for tipping at restaurants and a few other things," Stiles cracked and I cast a weary glance his direction. He sighed and leaned against the table next to me. "June, I don't know how to say this to get it through your head, but you matter. What you do matters. I didn't figure out how to find the nemeton and my dad until you and the magic you insist is so weird performed that ritual. Scott and I wouldn't have been able to get the nogitsune to split from me had it not been for your idea to get Scott to roar. I probably wouldn't be alive had you not knocked Scott and I out of that puddle of gasoline."
"Still kind of mad at you for that last one," I muttered, "That was incredibly stupid."
"So was you casting a shield around me and not you when I crashed the jeep," Stiles retorted and I smirked to myself. I shoved the blonde strands of hair out of my face and sighed. Promptly, I stood up and resumed Stiles' previous position of pacing the floor. Keeping my eyes off of the two boys for as long as I could, I finally peeked over to Scott's lifeless form, I immediately regretted doing so, for one more, I found myself not looking at Scott in a morgue, but I looked at Scott in one of the hallways of Beacon Hills High School.
Scott stood up from the floor next to the open locker and turned to look at me. Well I suppose he looked right through me before turning and facing the empty hall. He and I started walking down it in a slow manner before Liam appeared at the end.
"Catch," He called, before throwing a lacrosse ball with incredible speed and precision. I flinched, for it would've hit me square in the face had Scott not caught it. My eyes widened when I saw Scott examining the ball in his hands, and how he was holding it with his claws.
"That's why you're the alpha," Liam commended.
"June!" I shook my head clear of Scott and Liam to find Stiles standing right next to me and I spun to face him. His gaze was full of concern and I glanced down at my trembling hands.
"It's the same thing," I confessed, "I keep seeing Scott and Liam at school. I don't - I don't-"
"I'm going to call Argent," Stiles' stare never leaving me. I nodded at him while I clenched my fists before turning around to push Scott's "body" into the cold chamber and shutting the door. I pulled my phone out of my pocket and checked the time, my throat constricting when I saw that we had a mere six minutes to wake Scott back up, and Kira and Liam were nowhere to be seen.
"C'mon, c'mon," Stiles implored under his breath, frantically racing a hand through his hair, "Answer the phone. Answer the phone, Argent, c'mon." Several rings ensued and Stiles lost any patience he once possessed, "Come on, Argent. Answer the phone. Why are you not answering the phone?"
Amazingly on cue, Argent flew threw the doors and landed on his back, groaning. Stiles and I both rushed forward, but he waved the two of us back.
"Ugh, I was right," He boomed, glancing up at the two of us, "Stiles, June, get out of here." Directly behind Argent walked in a perfectly calm and at ease Kate Argent. Had it not been for who she was and the situation we were in, I was nearly tempted to ask how she kept her hair so perfect for someone who was constantly on the run. Peeking over at Stiles, I saw his eyes widen with fear and concern for his best friend lying on a slab in the locker next to him. Instinctively, I cast a shield around the both of us, and Kate cocked her head.
"June Child," She cooed mockingly and I tensed, "The witch. Are you supposed to be my niece's replacement or something?" I stiffened in anger and my nostrils flared.
"If Allison were here," I warned through gritted teeth, "Who do you think she would be standing by?"
Kate's eyes narrowed fractionally before her gaze went over to the door hiding Scott behind Stiles and myself. I felt a twist in my gut when Kate's face was replaced with Scott's back as he looked at himself in the mirror.
He was staring fixedly on his fangs, and I could see a hint of worry in his eyes.
"There's something different, isn't there," Liam questioned, and without taking his eyes off of the mirror, Scott acknowledged him.
"I've got more fangs," He answered, tilting his head in different directions as he opened and closed his mouth again and again.
Argent bumped shoulders with me, and my stare was once again back on Kate Argent. It hadn't escaped my attention that my shield had vanished while I was in Scott's mind. My breathing hitched and I squared my shoulders, ready to protect Argent and Stiles at a moment's notice.
"Look's like you've got a bit of a malfunction going on there," Kate teased and I huffed. She turned her stare to Stiles and my vision started turning red with anger, "Get out of the way, Stiles. I'm taking the body."
"Why?" His tone was shaky but his expression only showed how determined he was to protect Scott, "Visual confirmation?"
Kate's face remained impassive before she broke out into a smirk. She slowly stepped forward to the three of us. "Don't worry, handsome. I'm not the benefactor."
"Then what do you want with the body?" Argent interrogated, and Kate didn't even flinch.
"I wish I could tell you," She antagonized, and Argent moved forward. Kate grabbed his arm with a clawed hand while Argent tucked a gun under her chin. In that moment, my vision went white, and a searing pain made me clutch at my head. When I looked up, I wasn't in the morgue, I was once again with Scott and Liam in the school locker room.
"Maybe it's part of being an alpha," Liam suggested as Scott still examined his fangs. "Like you're becoming more of a werewolf."
"Or more of a monster," Scott pondered, and I could hear the concern in his tone.
"What if it makes you stronger? What if it's like you're growing?" As Liam's puzzling question was brought to light, I felt an arm go around my neck and I gasped. The other arm belonging to the person who was currently choking me threw an tomahawk at Liam's back. Had I been able to call out to Liam, I would have, had it not for my attacker cutting off any air supply. He slowly brought his hand to the arm that was suffocating me and typed on the wearable keyboard I hadn't seen before.
"Evolving," An automated voice called out and Scott turned around. He first saw Liam with an axe protruding from his back once more before looking up to me. His eyes widened as he saw me once again. I was losing the ability to focus, for I couldn't breathe. I did notice one of the hands holding me go up to their face before I felt him position both hands strategically on my neck and chin. Before Scott could even move, I felt my head whip to the side with a ferocity I didn't know was possible. At the same time, I heard a sickening crunch, and my sight vanished to black.
I felt Stiles' arms around me as my knees gave out. Steadying me, he stood me up as I looked over at him. Concern and fear were written across his face as he silently motioned to his nose. I mirrored his actions and felt a hot liquid residing there. It didn't take much guessing to know it was blood.
"I always forget you carry two," Kate teased, and I turned back to the two siblings.
"Back off," Argent barked.
"You sure you can pull that trigger fast enough?" Kate cautioned, and Argent readjusted in her grip.
"I don't want to," He admitted earnestly, and I could tell she was playing on that.
"You're not going to kill me," She proclaimed with such resonance that I half believed could have woken up Scott had she applied herself.
"I'm not gonna let you take his body," Argent snapped through clenched teeth.
"Okay well obviously you guys have a lot to talk about, so, maybe I saw some coffee, a vending machine outside," Stiles tried to diffuse the tension and get them both to leave the room. I looked over at him, and didn't even have time to reprimand him before Chris drew Kate's attention back over to him.
"Listen to me, Kate," His tone was calmer, but still urgent, "We have a plan."
"And if killing Scott was part of it, you're worse than me," She argued, and I honestly couldn't see where she was wrong in that sense.
"He's telling the truth, we're trying to get to the benefactor," I explained while wiping my nose clean with the back of my hand.
"If you didn't notice, you're on that list too," Argent tried to remind her, "And worth more than most." Kate finally let her façade slip and the anger seeped to the surface.
"That's why I'm here," She snarled, and Argent tensed up more than I thought was possible.
"Then back off and let us do what we planned," He roared, and Kate's mouth shut. She glanced over to Argent's arm that I noticed had the watch on it. I pulled out my own phone hastily to see that we had just three minutes left to save Scott.
"Take the berserkers, and go. Kate, please," He instructed in a much quieter voice. "We have a plan. Both siblings were panting by the time Kate let go of Argent and vice versa. She glanced over at both Stiles and myself before striding out of the swinging doors. I let out a breath that I didn't know I was holding when a minute and a half later, Kira came running into the morgue.
Hastily, Stiles cranked open the door and with my help pulled the slab holding Scott out for Kira to work her magic. I was directly above Scott's head with Kira on my left, Stiles and Argent on my right. I looked at Scott's pale form but was briefly overcome with panic when his eyes opened to reveal red, and his face actually was covered in blood. He locked eyes with me and smiled in a way that I pictured a serial killer to smile right before he killed another victim. It truly terrified me until I heard the yelling.
I was snapped out of my reverie when Scott screamed himself awake. He quickly gasped for air, and with wide eyes gazed around to everybody as we all let relief wash over us. Kira was quick to grab Scott's head and kiss him gently, ecstatic to see him okay.
"What happened?" He asked her, eyes still wide, "Did it work?"
Kira looked up at the three of us, and Scott followed her gaze. No one could say anything before Liam came bursting through the doors. We all turned to see him with a frantic expression as his stare fell on Kira.
"What?" She asked him.
"It's your mother," He admitted quietly, "She's hurt." Kira turned to look at us then look at Scott once more. Scott nodded frantically, and Kira took that as her cue to leave. She sprinted past Liam out the very same doors he entered through.
Scott grunted as he attempted to sit up on the slab. Along with the help of Argent, I got Scott into a sitting position and the sheet covering him fell down to a rather revealing area.
"Okay, before I see more of you than I want to, I'm going to go and get someone who can help," I said, and quickly exited the room. I walked down a hall to the elevators when I pressed the button. The lights flickering overhead reminded me that the power was still iffy, so I headed for the still dark stairs. I arrived to the ground floor and felt my phone buzz in my pocket. Still looking for a doctor or hospital official, I answered without first looking to see who it was.
"Hello?"
"June?"
I stopped in my tracks, "Malia? Are you okay? What's going on?"
I heard her pause before she sighed, "I'm fine. I'm at the school, can you please come get me?"
"I'll be there in twenty," I assured her before quickly hanging up on her. I was about to leave when a doctor brushed my shoulder has he walked by.
"Excuse me," I called out and he turned around, his coat swooshing behind him. I noticed he had blood on his knees and hands as well as the seams of his coat. His name tag read Dr. Geyer, and I recognized him as Liam's step-father.
"Dr. Geyer-"
"I'm sorry, miss, but I'm afraid I need to tend to other patients."
"It's my friend, Scott McCall," I told him and his shoulders sagged in pity.
"I'm very sorry about that, I wish we could've done more. His poor mother works here and all-"
"That's not it," I interrupted, "I was down in the morgue, we were paying our respects, when he just sat up." I almost smiled when his eyebrows furrowed in skepticism. "I think I'm going to have nightmares for a week, but he literally just sat up. He was talking to my boyfriend when I went to find a doctor."
"Are you sure you saw him sit-" His eyes glanced down the hall I came from and widened in surprise. I turned around to see Scott clad in sweatpants hobbling along with the help of Stiles and Argent. Dr. Geyer rushed past me to Scott and escorted him down the hall no doubt in search of Melissa. Stiles and Argent stopped next to me, and I turned to Chris.
"Thank you for coming with us," I told him and he nodded. "I have to get going, can you find a ride?"
"I'm sure I'll do just fine," He mentioned before walking down another hallway. I turned to Stiles, who was fidgeting with his hands.
"The same goes for you, I think Melissa will give you a ride home," I assured him before turning around.
"What - June, I-"
"I need to go pick up Malia," I turned to face him, and he couldn't meet my gaze. "She needs me more than you do right now." I left the hospital as quickly as I could, finding my car and pulling out of the parking lot en route to the high school.
I found Malia sitting atop the school's sign, which doubled as the door to the Hale vault and sighed. I knew that whatever she was going to tell me was not going to be something positive. Just by looking at her face, I could tell that she found something she didn't like the sound of.
"Where to?" I asked her when we got into the car, "I'll understand if you don't want to go home, you could spend the night at my place-"
"I want to go to Stiles' house," She said, taking me off guard, "I need to see the whole board, I think." I nodded silently and made my way to the Stilinski household.
"Did you find anything worth sharing?"
"Do you know anything about the Desert Wolf?" She asked me and I pursed my lips.
"Um, I know the name is like a nickname for coyote, does it mean something else?"
"My mother," Malia muttered to herself, "My real mother goes by the name Desert Wolf."
"She goes by a codename? Why would she-?" I thought about it for a second before glancing at Malia's crestfallen expression. "Oh, Malia. I don't-"
"I think I need to find her," Malia cut me off once again, blinking tears out of her eyes. "I need to know that I'm not like her. I need to ask her why she gave me up."
"Malia I can already tell you you're not a killer, okay? What makes you think that you are?"
"Because both of my birth parents are apparently psychotic killers, so why not me?" I pulled up to the Stilinski household, and turned off the car.
"Malia-"
"I just need a few minutes alone, I think," She told me, and I nodded in understanding. I glanced over to see the police cruiser parked in the driveway, and I sighed.
"I need to talk to the Sheriff anyway. Let me know when you're ready to go, okay?" We both climbed out of the car and walked up the drive. I tentatively knocked on the door, and Stilinski opened the door with a confused look on his face.
"June? Malia? Is everything okay?"
"Everything's fine," I assured him, "Malia just wanted to go over some stuff relating to the dead pool."
The sheriff nodded, "And you? Stiles isn't here, I thought you were with him."
"Actually, I'm here to talk to you," My words seemed to take him off guard as his eyebrows rose on his forehead.
"Why don't you girls come on in," He opened the door wider and we both stepped in. Malia made a beeline for Stiles' room and I stayed behind with the sheriff.
"Are you alright, June? Is this about Stiles?"
"Kind of, but more so about you."
"By all means, enlighten me."
"Can we sit down?" I asked, "I'd feel better if we were sitting down before I talked to you about this."
"I'm starting to get nervous here, June. Did something happen? Are you...?" He trailed off and glimpsed down at my stomach. I almost had to laugh.
"Christ in heaven, no, Sheriff. I'm way smarter than that." I could see the tension leave his shoulders as he escorted me to the kitchen table. We sat down and I started twiddling with my thumbs while gazing at all the police case strewn across the table.
"You're almost as fidgety as my son."
"I guess I should probably say why I'm here."
"That would be nice, yes."
I breathed in deeply, "I know it's not my place to be meddling in anybody's business regarding certain aspects of their lives. I especially know it's incredibly bad manners to involve myself in matters that have a financial aspect, it's terrible form really-"
"What are you saying here, June?"
"I want to help you. I want to help alleviate some of the financial stress you're under," The sheriff leaned back in his chair and pinched the bridge of his nose in exasperation.
"Did Stiles tell you about all the MRI and Eichen stuff?"
"More like he mentioned it in passing," I explained and the sheriff scoffed. I think I heard him mutter "unbelievable" under his breath, but I wasn't too sure.
"Look, Mister Stilinski, I'm not trying to throw around money for the sake of showing everyone that I have it, I genuinely just want to help the ones that I care about."
"June, this has absolutely nothing to do with you. It has nothing to do with my son, either, okay? I just - no."
"Sir, if you let me explain-"
"June, I appreciate what you're trying to do here, but it isn't necessary. We're going to be just fine, help or no help."
"Sheriff, you know I'm way too smart to believe that."
He pause for a moment, sizing me up. "Alright, true as that may be, I'm still not letting you help. I'm not a charity case."
"No, you're the sheriff of a town filled to the brim with things that the outside world could not possibly begin to even accept. Your plate is full, and adding something as silly as a debt is trivial to me and frankly ridiculous."
"It's a normal thing for people to struggle financially, June," He lectured me, "I understand that you come from a background where that was never going to be your reality, but it's everyone else's. You need to accept that you can't help them all."
"I'm not trying to help them all, I'm trying to help you," I argued. "And I'm not asking to pay away your debts, I'm asking you to let me make it more manageable. You have enough going on with Beacon Hills, Peter Hale walking around, a dead pool, assassins flooding in from everywhere. Let me take your mind off of something."
"Why me? Why not Melissa?" My gaze flashed down to my thumbs and I heard the sheriff let out a noise of disbelief. "Oh, Jesus. You went to Melissa too?"
"Yes."
"And?"
"She doesn't have to worry about her house anymore," I mumbled and Stilinski's hands went to his hair.
"Why did she say yes?"
"I may have told her you said yes," I flinched when Stilinski's face turned red.
"Why, June? Why are you doing this?"
"Because I have to help somehow," I felt mousy under his gaze. Like I was in trouble, "I don't know how to help make this better. These past few days I have felt more like an outsider than ever before, and I need to know that I can still make something better than I left it. But this isn't even about me, Sheriff.
"You shouldn't be worrying about how to pay for a trip to a mental institution because your son was possessed by a demon, nor should you be worrying about werewolf attacks, but you are. You should be worrying about what you're going to do when Stiles goes to college, or what you're going to do when you retire from police work, if you retire at all," He smiled, "I want you to feel normal. I owe you that much."
"You don't owe me anything, June."
"I can't even begin to explain what you did for me by letting me stay here. It makes all the difference in my life, just please, please let me make a difference in yours."
Sheriff Stilinski stared at me for a moment before getting up and heading to the kitchen. He came back holding two envelopes. He showed them to me before placing them behind his back. I heard the papers shuffling as he switched them in his hands. When it came to a stop, his eyebrows raised, signaling for me to pick an arm. I picked the left, and he held out an envelope to me. I eagerly reached out to grab it, but his didn't let go so easily."
"This will never happen again, you hear me?" I nodded fervently and he released the envelope. I saw in the top left corner the address for Beacon Hills Memorial Hospital, and the word "Final" stamped across it. I folded it in half and tucked it in my pocket.
"I would really appreciate it if you didn't tell Stiles what I did," I explained and the Sheriff nodded at me. "Also, can I use your restroom?"
"You know where it is," He waved me off and I headed down the hall to the familiar bathroom. I glanced around my surroundings with a sting of nostalgia before using the toilet. I washed my hands afterwards and also splashed some water on my face. Tonight was an exceptionally long night, the remnants of my nosebleed were proof enough. I heard a figure brush by the bathroom, and I opened the door to hear voices in Stiles' room.
"That night I cause the car crash," Malia started.
"You mean that night you were out of control on the full moon?" Stiles corrected.
"There's a part I didn't tell you about," I stopped in the doorway to see Malia grabbing a piece of tape off of the murder board I bought for Stiles. "Right before we got in the car, my mother - my adoptive mother, I guess - we got into a huge fight. I don't even remember what it was about, but I remember what I said."
"Malia-"
"I said 'I wish you were all dead.'"
"Killing doesn't run in a family," Stiles reminded her, and I couldn't help but agree.
"Maybe it does in mine," She turned around and taped the last of the dead pool onto the murder board before leaving the room.
She breezed past me and I called out to her, "I'll meet you in the car, okay?" She didn't acknowledge me, and I turned back to Stiles. I slowly walked in and approached the murder board, grabbing a dry erase marker.
"No more lies, to any of us, alright?" I explained as I wrote "The Desert Wolf" in the corner of board. I turned around to face him, and he nodded at me. "I'm done with the lying." I turned to leave when he caught me off guard.
"Why did you say you were mad at me again?"
"Because I just got you," I turned around to answer him.
"I don't get what that means," He was asking me, and I could see it in his eyes.
Licking my chapped lips, I stepped closer to him, "Stiles, I really, really like being with you. I like being here in Beacon Hills with all my friends. If my parents were to die, and I could've prevented it had I known what you kept from me? I don't really think I could look at anyone who knew and still consider them my friends." I walked back to the doorway.
"June, please, please don't go."
"I need to go talk with Malia," I started, cursing the tears falling from my eyes, "And I need time away from you, okay?"
"I can't just let you go like this."
"You hurt me, Stiles. Plain and simple, you hurt me. And I'm not ready to try and forgive you for it."
Stiles' shoulders sagged when I turned to leave his room. I was just as quick as Malia was to get out of the house, I barely even said a proper goodbye to the sheriff. Malia was thankfully leaning next to my car, and I heard her sniffling.
"Malia?"
"Can I spend the night at your house?" She asked me and I smiled.
"Yeah, I know just the thing to cheer you up."
"What?"
"I'm about to show you the world of Tom Cruise. You're life is about to change."