All That Glitters Is Silver

Allison and I followed dutifully behind Kate. The only thing I could hear was our heavy breathing and footfalls’ snapping leaves and twigs. My heart was thumping erratically in my chest, dying to know what Kate was going to show us—but, at the same time, petrified.

We trudged through the forest in silence for a few moments before we reached something at the base of a large tree. It was some sort of hidden cellar.

Kate pulled it open with both her hands and a slight groan. The doors fell apart with clang and Kate motioned for us to head down there.

Allison went first. I climbed down next. The ladder was a bit grimy and the underground was dank. It smelled like mildew and burnt flesh. I didn’t want to know why it smelt like the latter but I had a horrible idea I was about to find out.

Kate jumped down, her boots smacked on the wet floor noisily. Obviously we weren’t sneaky around or else she would have been a bit stealthier.

“This way,” Kate nodded, leading us down a long and empty hall with stray light bulbs hanging from the ceiling every few yards. The hall echoed deafeningly with every step.

Time seemed to slow down as we neared the heavy metal door at the end of the hall. My breath was coming out raggedly and Allison had resorted to chewing her nails.

“What is this place?” Allison finally spoke up when we stopped right in front of the door.

Kate turned to us. Excitement and seriousness mingled on her expression, “Let’s start with the basics. You know how every family has its secrets?”

Allison looked down and back up to Kate, perplexed. I stayed quiet by her side.

A ghost of a smirk rose on Kate’s full lips, “Ours are a little different.” And with that, she thrust open the metal door. Allison crept in first with me almost falling on top of her, trying to see over her head.

It was too dark to see much until Kate strutted in to turned on a light. Allison and I both took positions in front of the door before curiosity got the better of me and I crept forward as well. Kate glanced back, waiting for us to come closer to get the full effect.

I could practically hear Allison’s erratic heart beat. It mirrored my own. Allison caught my eye, frowning and silently demanding what was going on.

Through the darkness, I could see a dark mass hanging from a beam but not much else. There was a small fragment of moon light streaming through a grate on the far side of the dungeon-like room.

Allison wrapped her arms around her body. My hands absentmindedly flew to my stomach again. I had a weird sensation running through me.

Kate slammed on the light and for a moment, I was blinded by the sudden change in atmosphere. A floor-rumbling roar echoed in my ears as I got a better look at what I was seeing: Derek, chained up against some rusty metal bars, his face full wolf.

I had never seen Derek like this before and it was unsettling as much as it was exciting. But then I realized that he was Kate’s prisoner and my chest felt like it was collapsing. My eyes widened as Allison gasped a little. Her whole body locked for a moment before loosening up.

We knew we were being watched closely by Kate. This was a test, to see how we’d handle the shock of werewolves existing. However, my shock was seeing Derek as the subject and I hoped it read the same as Allison’s bewilderment and disbelief.

Kate’s smile was slightly deranged when she said, “Isn’t he beautiful?”

Another angry growl ripped from his lips as he struggled against his restraints. Allison was starting to hyperventilate next to me. I grabbed her hand and squeezed it reassuringly, trying not to make eye contact with Derek. I didn’t like the way Kate was looking at him. It was lustful and unbefitting the moment.

He kept growling and I couldn’t tell if he was just trying to get my attention or shout for help in general. I pursed my lips and lifted my head, making eye contact. His eyes conveyed what couldn’t be spoken. He was terrified and guilty but also pleading me not to act like I knew him or do anything that might make Kate suspect us.

I nodded my head down half an inch to let him know understood. I tried to mask my face to match Allison’s before Kate noticed the familiarity in my eyes and my lack of surprise.

My eyes darted to Kate and I thought I had been caught for a brief second. She looked back at Derek who went on growling again, acting like he had no idea who I was and all he wanted to do was kill us all.

I started backing up, swallowing hard. “I think I’ve seen enough.”

Obviously, Kate had another idea. She flipped on a switch from a large, beige box next to her and sparks flew across the air. Derek yelped in pain. His body jolted around from the impact of his sudden electrocution from the two patches of wires on his naked stomach.

Now I knew why it smelt like burnt flesh.

My hand flew to my mouth to stifle a scream. Derek’s painful cries covered it up. His face morphed between human and werewolf uncontrollably. The lights around the room crackled and popped from the strain of the electricity being forced into the wires covering Derek.

Even though three minutes ago I hadn’t cared if Derek got hurt or that I had given up our baby to Peter, I wanted so badly to help him.

“What are you doing to him? Is that gonna kill him?” Allison questioned, blinking uncontrollably.

Kate smirked, “Oh, come on now, kiddo. Don’t get all ethical on me now.”

I wanted to shout at Kate to turn it off as Derek struggled helplessly in his chains. I couldn’t imagine the kind of pain he was in.

Allison stayed cool next to me, trying not to flinch as I remained paralyzed behind her. “What is he?”

That seemed to be the sixty-four thousand dollar question.

“Shape shifter,” Kate shrugged casually like Derek wasn’t being tortured in front of us. “Lycaon, werewolf.” Her body shook with inhumane laughter. The electrocution was over. Now Derek was breathing heavily, staring at me with his petrifying blue eyes. “To me, he’s just another dumb animal.”

She popped on the switch again and I had to look away. I needed to get out of here. Kate could see it in my eyes: the pain, the desire to help Derek. He was a wanted killer in the state after what had happened at the school. As far as anyone but Scott and Stiles knew, I had never met Derek Hale in my life and if I had, I should want to turn him in to the police. Now that Kate was finally revealing to us what he really was, I should want to kill him.

But, I didn’t. I only wanted to make it stop. It was all over my face.

“Come here,” Derek’s body went limp again as Kate stood up, shoving her hands in his trembling mouth, relieving his teeth to the light, “See these right here? These are canines, also known as fangs. Made for the tearing and rending of flesh. Not something you’d find on those cute, leaf-eaters out in the woods.”

“This is a joke to you?” Kate was making that pretty clear. Allison didn’t need to ask such a dumb question but she was having an entire world thrown into her face. I was glad Scott and Stiles had told me in private and not in front of Kate. I just wished I had found out under different circumstances.

Kate tilted her head, letting her hand fall from Derek’s body. She was careful to touch the skin over his abs on the way down, stirring something inside me. “Sweetheart, there are werewolves running around. Everything’s a joke to me. How else do you think I stay sane?”

“So,” Allison took in a deep breath. I could tell she was seconds away from losing it. I didn’t blame her in the least. “It was him at the high school? And all the other animal attacks?”

Kate sneered but walked away from Derek’s limp form, easing me somewhat. “There are actually three of them. Another younger one like him,” She nodded towards Derek, “called a Beta. And then there’s the Alpha.”

She placed a hand comfortingly on both our shoulders. “An Alpha is a pack leader: bigger, stronger, faster. Those are the real ugly ones.” She explained before turning to face me. My heat picked up once again, terrified I’d been caught. I had been too caught off guard by Derek’s sudden capture and torture to put on any sort of charade.

“How are you taking this?” Kate questioned softly, “You haven’t said much.”

“Just soaking it all in.” I said in a thick voice.

“You had been suspecting something for awhile now, haven’t you.” It wasn’t a question.

“Yes,” I murmured. I could feel Allison’s accusing gaze.

“Well, now you know.” Kate winked as we walked back through the metal door. I tried to glimpse back at Derek discreetly. His head lolled a bit before raising, as if he could sense my distress and need to communicate. He blinked at me, signaling me to tell Scott where he was. I blinked back before Kate shut the door and he was gone.

“When were they going to tell us?” Allison sounded surprisingly angry.

Kate stepped back from the handle, leaning against the door, “They still haven’t decided if they are.”

“Why?” Allison demanded.

“Let’s just say if you reacted badly once you found out,” Kate clucked her tongue, moving on through the hall, expecting us to follow her, “not good.”

“What do you mean, ‘not good’?” I interrogated, interested in new information. I knew about werewolves, it was time I learned something about my family.

“They don’t think that you can handle it.” Kate revealed, “They look at you like some frightened little girls who are going to run crying once they find out the truth.”

I resented that. How well could they have possibly taken it once they found out the truth? Or had their parents been straight with them from day one?

“Me,” Kate went on as we neared the ladder, “What I see: natural talent. Allison,” Kate halted and looked at my cousin; “You said you wanted to feel more powerful, right? Now’s your chance. And Cassie,” She turned her fiery gaze my way, “Don’t you want revenge for what happened to your mother?” Of course I did. How could she even ask that? “That thing in there is what killed her. Maybe not the exact one but they’re all the same. Each one you kill brings you closer to that closure, that sweet revenge.” Kate smiled madly like she was reminiscing some happy time she tracked down a werewolf and murdered it.

All I could think about what how that thing in there was the father of my child and I was beyond fucked.

“What are we supposed to do now?” Allison begged the question. Now that we knew, what did we do?

“Go to school, do your homework. Go to the formal tomorrow night.” She said that last part directly at me. “Be two normal teenage girls who don’t know anything. Trust me to get everything ready for the next part.”

“What’s the next part?” I asked.

Kate’s eyes shone in the dim lighting from the lone light bulb above our heads. “You’re going to help me catch the second Beta.”

My breath hitched in my throat. This was disastrous on so many levels. Eventually, Kate and every other hunter would have found out the identity of the second Beta. That shouldn’t have come as such a big shock to me but—honestly—the thought hadn’t even crossed my mind.

The most troublesome part wasn’t that we were going to help catch the second Beta.

It was the fact that Scott was the second Beta.