Chapter 16

"We talked about this, you agreed that we would wait," Derek pointed out as he joined her on the bed.

"After almost dying tonight, I'm rethinking that agreement," Scarlet admitted.

"You did not almost die, yes the alpha knows that you have a mate, but it also knows that you are human. It won't hurt you, it might try to break the bond, but it won't hurt you."

"I thought you said the bond can't be broken."

"Not by one of us, but if another werewolf wanted you badly enough, they would have to... mark you."

"Mark me," Scarlet asked.

"Change you, into a werewolf, not only would you be in their pack, but if someone other than me were to change you, you would basically belong to them. It wouldn't be like us, we belong to one another, if the alpha were to change you, he would have control over you, you belong to him, but he belongs to no one."

"So all he has to do is change me? I thought you said he wouldn't hurt me," Scarlet replied.

"Yes biting you would hurt you, but in order for him to break the bond, he would also have to kill me. That is the only way to break the bond," Derek explained.

"And you think that the alpha will do that," Scarlet asked.

"I don't know Scar, I don't know what he wants, what he's after. I think for now, we are safe, this is more of a message to me. He's telling me that he knows about you, trust me, he could have changed you tonight, but he didn't. It's a warning."

"Derek," Scarlet said as she ran a hand through her hair. "What if he..."

"Don't, don't do that. We don't know what he wants, we don't know that he's going to try and break our bond, don't think about it," Derek said as he grabbed her hand. "I will protect you."

"Like you protected me tonight," Scarlet snapped. She immediately regretted it though. "I'm sorry, that's not fair."

"You're right, I should have known where you were, I didn't know you were there until you climbed out of the ambulance. I'm so caught up in figuring out who the alpha is and dealing with Scott that I haven't, I haven't been there for you."

Scarlet leaned over and kissed him on the cheek. "You're here now," she said. She pulled back and nervously met his gaze. "Will you stay with me? I don't want to be alone tonight."

"Yeah, of course," Derek said. He rose from the bed and took off his jeans. Scarlet stared at him for a moment a blush racing up her face. She quickly glanced away from him but pushed the blankets down so he could join her. It took them a moment to get settled, but soon Scarlet was tucked securely against Derek's chest, his arm thrown across her waist.

Being this close to her, made Derek hyperaware of everything about her. The way her body moved as she breathed, the way her hair fell across her skin, the way her skin smelled and felt, every twitch of her body. While sleep came easily for Scarlet once she was wrapped in Derek's arms, it did not come easy for him.

Derek lay awake going over every detail in his mind, who could the alpha be? What did it have against him and his family? How far would this person go to hurt him and would hurting him also mean hurting Scarlet? His biggest concern was how to keep her safe, how was he going to protect her when he didn't know who was the threat. The night slowly passed and eventually Derek was able to fall asleep.

It didn't last long though, a noise in the house jolted him awake. His eyes flew open and his gaze roamed the room as he listened intently to the sounds. Scarlet shifted slightly, in their sleep, Scarlet had ended up with her head on his chest. Derek carefully shifted out from beneath her and grabbed his jeans off the floor. Her dad was awake, and it was only a matter of minutes before he came in to check on her.

Derek pulled his shoes on, before glancing at the bed once more. He briefly considered leaving a note in case Scarlet woke up while he was gone. He knew that her dad might find it, so he decided against it. He pushed the window open and climbed out, closing the window behind him.

It was some time later that Scarlet woke up. She rolled over, her hand reaching for Derek but found he was not there. Her eyes fluttered open and she saw that her room was empty, the bed was cold now. She sat up and glanced at the clock. It was well past time for her to go to school. She wondered if her dad or Stiles had come to wake her, but she figured that they had not wanted to wake her up.

Scarlet drew her knees up into her chest and wrapped her arms around her legs. She rested her forehead against her knees and let out a soft sigh. Last night came rushing back to her in a flash and her head snapped up. Her entire body tensed and she drew in a shaky breath. She squeezed her eyes shut as she pulled Derek's shirt tighter around her.

Suddenly, Scarlet heard a series of noises from outside the house. She glanced toward her window and her breath caught in her throat as a shadow passed over it. She scrambled out of her bed and pulled open her closet door. She stepped inside and shut the door behind her as she sank down to the floor. She pushed herself back so she was pressed against the wall.

Scarlet pressed her hand over her mouth to keep from making any noises. She could hear someone moving around her room. She squeezed her eyes shut again and her closet door was yanked open. She flinched back, bumping her head against the wall as she did so.

"Scarlet, what are you doing," Derek asked as he stared at her.

Her eyes popped open and she stared back at him. She scrambled off the floor and threw herself into his arms. Derek stumbled back a step, surprised by her reaction. "I thought you were the alpha," Scarlet mumbled into his chest.

Derek drew in a deep breath as he realized that this was what her life was going to be like until they got rid of the alpha. She was going to be afraid and in danger until he stopped whoever it was. "It's fine, I didn't want your dad to find us together so I went home and changed. I brought you breakfast," he explained.

Scarlet pulled back and looked up at him. She gave him a weak smile before kissing him on the cheek. She stared at Derek for a moment, a strange look in her eyes. She shook her head suddenly and pulled away from him, stepping toward the bathroom. "I'm going to use the bathroom, I'll be back in a minute."

Derek caught her wrist as she moved away from him. She turned and met his gaze, her lower lip caught between her teeth as she looked back at him. "Are you ok," Derek asked. He tucked a stray curl behind her ear as she nodded at him. She caught his hand as it trailed across her cheek. She leaned into his touch, breathing out as she did so.

"I'm scared," Scarlet whispered.

"I'm scared too," Derek admitted. Scarlet's eyes widened as she stared at him. He pulled her into a hug holding her tightly. "I'm going to do everything that I can to protect you, but that doesn't mean I'm not worried. I need to know what you and Jackson saw last night."

Scarlet pulled away from him and ran a hand through her hair. She wandered into her bathroom and turned on her sink. Derek knew that she needed a moment to collect herself so he sat on her bed and waited. Scarlet stared at herself in the mirror as she brushed her teeth. Last night was a blur, but there were things that stood out to her.

Scarlet spat out the toothpaste and met Derek's gaze in the mirror. She looked down as she began to speak. "I don't know what Jackson saw. He saw something because he pulled me down behind the shelf, but I don't know if he saw what it was."

"Did you," Derek asked as he rose from the bed and leaned against the doorframe.

Scarlet nodded silently and fidgeted with her toothbrush. "It wasn't a mountain lion, or a cougar. It was too big. It had red eyes and black fur. There was only one thing it could have been," she finally said.

"What?"

"A wolf," Scarlet said as she turned to face him. "A werewolf I mean, but not like you or Scott. Neither of you looked like that when you... shifted? Is that what you call it?"

"Yeah, so it was a wolf," Derek said.

"A huge wolf, I mean it was massive and it didn't look like a regular wolf. The way it was leaning over us, it was more human than animal. It was so angry."

"Angry," Derek asked. "How did you know it was angry?"

Scarlet crossed her arms over her chest and shrugged. "I don't know, it wasn't like... you remember that day at the lake? When I was having a panic attack and you found me? You said you knew something was wrong. When the alpha saw my mark, I knew it was angry. I could feel how angry it was."

"Did... did you...," Derek trailed off unsure of how to phrase the question.

"Did I what?"

"Did you get anything else?"

Scarlet raised her eyebrows in confusion. "Like what?"

"That day at the lake, I knew in my gut there was something wrong with you. Last night though, I had no idea you were even there. Did the alpha do anything else to you? Did you sense anything other than anger?"

Scarlet pursed her lips as she glanced down, trying to remember. She chewed at her lip as she thought. "I don't... I don't know Derek."

"Close your eyes," Derek said as he moved closer to her. She met his gaze for a moment before closing her eyes. "Relax, don't think about anything, just clear your mind."

Scarlet tried to do as he asked. She inhaled sharply when she felt his hands on either side of her face. Derek pressed a gentle kiss to her lips and she relaxed into him. He pulled back slightly resting his forehead against hers.

Suddenly she was back there, pinned beneath the shelf and the alpha was crouched over her again. Scarlet let out a sharp cry and jerked away from Derek. She drew in a ragged breath as she stared at him in confusion.

"Did you do that," she demanded.

"What did you see?"

"Why did you do that," Scarlet cried instead of answering him.

"I triggered your memories, I need to know exactly what happened last night. What else did you feel?"

Scarlet stared at him for a long moment before answering him. "It wanted me," she whispered.

"Wanted you how?"

"It thought... I was pretty and it wanted me," Scarlet replied in disgust.

"Scarlet," Derek said as he reached for her. She jerked away from him shaking her head.

"You should go."

"Scarlet," Derek started to say.

"No, Derek you should go. I can't do this right now. I'll text you later."

"Fine," Derek snapped. "You want me to leave, I'll leave."

Scarlet didn't move until he got to the window. She took two steps forward and he froze. "Derek," she whispered. He turned his head to the side, his jaw clenched tight. "This is a lot worse than you thought it was. Isn't it?"

Derek turned to face her, the look in her eyes cutting him down to his core. She looked down, knowing it was hurting him. That didn't stop the tears though. She leaned against the doorframe and slowly sank to the ground. Derek caught her before she hit the floor though. She clung to him as the realization hit her.

"We can't see one another any more," Derek whispered. "It's not safe for you. The Argents know about you, the alpha knows. It's only a matter of time before you are put in serious danger. Until this is over, we can't be together."

Scarlet nodded but continued to cry. She knew he was trying to do what was best, but it didn't hurt any less. "I know," Scarlet whispered. She rested her forehead against his chest as she tried to stop her tears.

"If something happens, if you are in trouble, I will know. Its just for a little while, until all this is over."

"I know."

Derek pressed a kiss to the top of her head before pulling away from her. He quickly made his way to the window and climbed out without looking back. He knew if he looked at her sitting on the floor with tears on her face he would never leave.