Disclaimer: I do not own Teen Wolf.
Chapter 3: Savior
"Help! Scott? Is anybody there? Somebody help me please!" Liam shouted from the bottom of a well. He clutched a wound on his chest that stung fiercely and left the broken skin with a yellow discoloration. Unknown to the recently bitten wolf, the wolfsbane in his system that Garrett had stabbed into him spread slowly through his blood.
"See you then." Scott hung up his phone and walked inside the classroom. He looked around for Stiles then remembered that he was going to the police station with Lydia to talk to Parrish.
Towards the end of third period, Scott noticed someone looking at him through the window of the classroom door. It was Mason, Liam's best friend. The boy gestured for him to come out to the hallway. Scott shoved his books clumsily in his backpack and tried to sneak out the back door.
"McCall, where are you going?" his English teacher screeched, but he was already out the door.
"Hey, you know where Liam is?" Mason asked.
"Isn't he in class?" He could smell anxiety emanating from the younger boy. "What's wrong?
"We went running first period and he just took off and disappeared. I haven't seen him since and I'm getting worried."
"Who does he have for second period?" Scott asked as he pulled out his phone from his pocket and texted his beta.
"Finstock I think."
Scott led the way to Coach's office and knocked on the door before opening it. Coach sat at his desk drinking what appeared to be apple juice.
"McCall, why aren't you in class?" he croaked, sounding congested.
"We were looking for Liam," Scott said.
As he stepped towards the desk, Coach waved him back and pointed comically at his throat, indicating he was contagious.
"Did he show up today?" Mason asked from the door frame.
Coach took a swig of juice from his bottle, coughed, and looked at the boys. "Sorry guys, Liam skipped my class. Maybe he's sick," he sniffed. "Like me."
Scott and Mason exchanged glances.
"Liam didn't look sick on our run," Mason told Scott.
In the middle of the woods, Liam struggled to hold himself up on the stone walls of the well. Throughout the day, he had felt his body grow weaker from the wolfsbane, but the thought of him getting out and beating the crap out of Garrrett for throwing him in there kept him motivated.
On and on Liam climbed, slowly reaching the top of the well. Fatigue and pain tore through his arms and legs and it felt like his chest was on fire. He coughed violently and felt his hands losing their grip on the slippery rocks. He grunted with effort, telling himself to hold on.
Liam looked up at the sky through the broken boards nailed over the well's opening. Nighttime had fallen over the woods and the moon illuminated the dark, cloudy sky. At the sight of the white orb, a shot of adrenaline raced through the boy's body and he yelled with all his might, his blue eyes glowing bright yellow.
A few miles away, Rose stopped in her tracks. It sounded like someone was screaming. The hairs on the back of her neck stood on end and she hugged her jacket closer to her body for warmth. Hoping that her imagination was getting the best of her, she hurried on her way out the woods as if she hadn't heard anything.
This impromptu visit to Beacon Hills Preserve brought back many memories for Rose. Even though she hadn't stepped foot there for a long time, it still seemed like the same woods she had gotten to know so well from her teenage years, like solid proof of a different life. Everything felt so familiar, still looked the same. Everything except the Hale House of course. She had wanted to visit all her favorite places - the lookout point, the lake, the bridge - but as soon as she laid eyes on the construction site that was once the home of Derek and his family, she lost interest in everything else.
She was close to the edge of the woods when the sound of someone running stopped her again. She quickly hid behind a tree and peered out discreetly.
Scott sprinted rapidly between the trees, not missing a step. Rose watched in amazement as he sped through the woods. He suddenly jumped forward and landed with his hands underneath him and started running on all fours like a wild animal. She covered her mouth with her hand to stop a gasp from compromising her location. Scott ran deeper into the woods, unaware of his cousin lurking in the shadows.
"No, please no," Rose breathed, alone once more.
"I'm gonna kill Garrett," Liam said as he took off Scott's helmet and dismounted from his dirt bike.
"Something already beat you to it," Scott said, taking the helmet from Liam's outstretched hand.
"Something?"
"Berserkers," Scott said darkly.
"He's really dead?" Liam asked in disbelief.
"And so is Violet. I think Kate killed her."
"Who?"
"I'll explain later. You okay?"
"Yeah," Liam answered, touching his chest where Deaton had sliced him open which released the poison from his body. "The cut already healed."
"Good. I'll see you tomorrow," he clapped Liam on the shoulder and said goodbye.
Half an hour later, Scott quietly closed the door of his father's hospital room behind him. Agent McCall was fast asleep when Scott arrived, so Scott didn't get a chance to talk to him.
"He's doing okay. " a voice behind him said.
Scott turned around and came face-to-face with Rose.
"He has a concussion and some nasty cuts but he'll be alright," she said. "He'll probably be released in the morning."
He nodded to show he understood. "What are you doing here?"
"I heard about your dad, so I stopped by to see him," she said, taking a seat on a chair pushed against the wall. "I guess I'm subconsciously trying to make up for years worth of not being here."
Scott sat down next to her. "It's okay. You had college and stuff."
"But I never made the effort to come back and visit, even when my mother still lived here. I've realized that a lot of things must have happened while I was gone," she said. "I should have been there for you, Scott. I'm sorry."
Something about the way she looked at him made Scott feel uneasy.
"I'm the one who should be apologizing. I completely bailed on you today," he said, trying to keep the conversation light.
They had made plans to meet after Scott got out of school, but with Liam missing and Garrett coercing him to break Violet out of police custody, he had to cancel.
"Don't worry about it," Rose said, shrugging it off. An image of Scott running through the woods manifested in her mind. "Tell me about your day."
"Uhh, it was good," he stammered.
"Anything interesting happen?" she asked, trying to sound casual.
"No, just studying," he lied. "That's why I couldn't make it today. The PSATs are tomorrow and I realized I knew nothing and needed to cram."
She smiled despite herself. He was an excellent liar, just like Derek had been.
"I guess tomorrow is a big day for us both," she said, rising from her seat.
Scott raised his eyebrows.
"Today I got offered the clinical pharmacist position here and I accepted. My first day is tomorrow."
"That's awesome. Congratulations!" Scott exclaimed, giving her a hug.
Rose savored the moment, hoping beyond hope that what she saw tonight had some kind of logical explanation. They walked out to the parking lot together and bid each other good luck on the coming day.
"Hey Rose," Scott called out. "We can hang out tomorrow night if you're free."
She smiled. "Yeah, I'd like that. Why don't you come over for dinner and see my new place? I'll text you the address."
"Sounds good." He climbed on his dirt bike, slipped his helmet on, and drove off.
As she got into her car to avoid the light drizzle coming down, Rose began planning her next move. She needed to find out the truth. If her suspicions about Scott were right, Derek wouldn't be the only one she needed to help.
Hey everyone. Thanks for reading. I do apologize for the long delay. I've been thinking a lot about where I want this story to go (especially after watching the Season 4 finale), and I didn't want to post this chapter until I was sure it wouldn't affect the outcome of future chapters like what happened with Chapter 2. Originally, it had been five years since Derek and Rose last saw each other when Derek left BH. To keep this part of the story canon, I made a change in Chapter 2 from five years to seven years since at this point in the TW universe, it's been more or less seven years since the Hale House fire and Derek left shortly after that. However, Rose hasn't been back to BH in about six years. She finished her senior year at BHHS before moving away - one year after Derek left. This will be further explored in a later chapter.
arrow-through-my-writers-block - Yes, there will be a bit of Stiles next chapter. Stiles and Rose have a few things in common and I'm excited to share that throughout the story.
I will do my best to post new chapters on a regular basis. Editing and committing to an idea slows me down and I'm a perfectionist, but I'll try to post once a week on the weekends. Thank you and please let me know your thoughts!