Forty-Four

IT SEEMED LIKE THE NIGHT WOULD NEVER END.

Repressed memories, fights with Scott, breaking down in Stiles's arms, fighting the dread doctors till she literally passed out...Sierra had enough of this day.

Yet, instead of being home to rest--like she promised Melissa-- Sierra found herself back at the animal clinic. Her arms were crossed over her chest, a frown tugging down the corners of her mouth while she stood on the side of the examination table.

The three boys with her were smart enough to realize Sierra wasn't happy, not in the slightest.

Scott continued to sneak worried glances at her, even though he never spoke aloud. Melissa didn't know specifically why Sierra passed out, but gave Scott a good guess.

His best friend was exhausted.

And even though the two weren't on speaking terms, Scott still cared about her well-being. He wanted her to go home and sleep. But then he got a call from Stiles.

The anxious boy positioned himself across from Scott, a few feet away from Sierra and next to Theo. Everyone stared at the table, before Stiles swallowed hard. He pulled back the sheet to reveal Josh's body, while Theo watched the leaders' reactions carefully.

Sierra felt her breath hitch at the sight, seeing the youthful face dripping in blood. Stiles's expression softened as she turned away, moving her arms over her head. She couldn't stand to look at another kid like that...murdered by these insane scientists.

Scott remained frozen, yet his eyes glistened.

"Do you know him?" Theo asked.

"His name was Josh," Scott said painfully, remembering him from a class he had with Stiles. "He was a junior."

Stiles and Theo exchanged glances, but stayed quiet. Scott took a step back like Sierra did, so he could process another classmate being gone. Stiles covered Josh up with the sheet and released a sigh.

Sierra whirled back around, an edge to her tone as she demanded, "Which one of them did it?"

"Yeah," Scott agreed, looking back at the two. "Was it the one with the cane?"

Stiles made Theo answer, pressing his own mouth into a firm line. His gaze flicked over to Sierra, who stared at them expectantly. There was no way he was going to hide anything from her.

"Yeah," Theo finally stated, barely nodding. "It was the one with the cane."

Sierra caught Stiles's attention as Theo questioned Scott about what their next move was going to be. Stiles obviously looked freaked out, a pleading look on his face.

He needed to talk to her. Alone.

"We can't just set the alarm and leave," Scott said, not realizing Stiles and Sierra weren't listening. "That's how Tracy disappeared."

Sierra pursed her lips, not understanding her boyfriend's signal. He looked like he was going to burst at the seams. But then, he ever so slightly tilted his head. Sierra followed the line with her eyes, trying to notice anything that could be out of place.

Then she noticed Theo.

From him spending time with the pack, she knew he could keep his heart rate steady. Theo also rarely let his emotions show. But Sierra was more powerful than that. His energy didn't match up with his expression.

It only took one glance from Stiles, shifting from Theo to Josh for the pieces to come together.

Her eyes widened, just as Theo volunteered to stay behind to watch over Josh's body. Everyone looked at the beta in surprise--Sierra for a completely different reason. Theo shrugged, "It's not like I had a big Saturday night planned."

No one had a chance to propose a different idea, as Scott's phone buzzed. He pulled it out of his pocket, seeing a text from Liam.

His jaw dropped, making Stiles question him. "What is it now?"

"Another one," Scott answered, swallowing his shock. "Another chimera." His body turned to Sierra, who tensed.

"Why are you looking at me?"

"Because it's Hayden."

*^*^*^*^*^*

Arriving at Liam's house, Sierra was even angrier than before.

Not only from exhaustion, but because the dread doctors decided to mess with another girl she cared about. She had already lost Tracy; she didn't want to lose Hayden too.

While Scott rushed to the front door, Stiles pulled Sierra off to the side. "We have to talk," he said lowly.

"Trust me, I know," Sierra blew out a heavy breath, "but not here. Right now, we need to focus on Hayden."

Stiles nodded, though he continued to frown. Neither of them were eager to leave Theo behind at the animal clinic, but it had been there only option.

The door opened just as Stiles and Sierra joined Scott on the porch.

"Hi, Mrs. Dunbar," Sierra plastered a fake smile on her face. "Sorry to bother you this late."

"Oh, you're never a bother, Sierra," the woman returned the smile genuinely. "What brings you here at this hour?"

Scott and Stiles watched Sierra in surprise as she lied with ease. "Liam texted me about some math questions he and Hayden had while they studied for their big test tomorrow. Since I was in the neighborhood with Scott and Stiles, I figured it was just better to drop by."

"Oh, that's perfectly fine," Mrs. Dunbar waved her hand before opening the door wider. "Come on in. You know where Liam's room is, right?"

"Yes m'am," Sierra nodded, walking inside. Scott and Stiles exchanged bewildered looks but followed her. "Hopefully it won't take too long and we can get out of your hair."

Mrs. Dunbar assured her, "Take your time, darling. Nice to meet you boys."

Scott awkwardly smiled, while Stiles settled for a nod. "You too."

Sierra led the way upstairs as Mrs. Dunbar went back to the living room. However, one missed step led Stiles to catch her before she completely fell back.

"Are you alright?" he asked, Scott also looking at her in concern.

But Sierra brushed them off. "I'm fine—just tired."

She continued walking upstairs, making Scott and Stiles exchange worried glances before they followed.

The trio found Liam in a state of mild panic. "Get in here," he ushered quickly before closing and locking his door. "Thank god you guys are here."

"Where's Hayden?" Sierra got straight to the point.

"In there."

Sierra turned to follow his finger to see another door, which led to Liam's bathroom.

Scott moved first, knocking on the door three times. He leaned forward, pressing his ear against the wood to listen. "Hayden?" he said her name in concern. "It's Scott. Remember I'm a friend of Sierra's? I know that you're scared but we wanna help."

Silence.

Scott faced Liam, his eyebrows furrowed together. "I can hear her heart beating; she's really freaked out. What happened?"

"I don't know," Liam said truthfully. "She was fine when we got here, but I text you for two seconds and she locked herself in."

"Why?" Stiles asked.

Liam repeated, a frown on his face. "I don't know."

Sierra studied his movements as he confirmed Hayden being a chimera. "She said she heard a voice," he explained to the seniors. "It said, 'Your condition improves.'"

To her, despite the circumstances, it was obvious: Liam liked her. A lot. She recognized the look in his eye every time he said her name; it was the same way Stiles looked at her.

"Well, that's unsettling," Stiles commented, breaking her train of thought. He stepped forward, taking his shot on getting the sophomore to come out. "Hayden? This is Stiles. You've known me for a long time, alright? Your sister works with my dad down at the station. Look, just open the door, okay? You can trust us."

Silence.

Sierra sighed, and rest her hand on Stiles's shoulder. When he turned her way, she said softly, "Let me try."

He nodded, backing away from the door with Scott and Liam.

"Hey, girlie," she greeted first, keeping her voice steady. "It's me, Sierra. I know tonight has been a lot to take in and I'm sure you have a million questions. We can answer all of them if you come out. We just want to tell you the truth, Hayden, and that sort of thing is better face-to-face."

Hayden didn't reply, but Sierra heard movement on the other side. So she kept going.

"I need to make sure you're alright," Sierra continued. "And if you don't open the door, I'm going to have to break it down. It's okay if you don't want to talk or if you're not ready to believe us, but you know I would never lie to you. I just...you gotta let me know you're okay in there."

Stiles bit down on his lip. From her words, his mind flashed back to that night with Donovan. Where she held him as he cried, listened to everything he did or didn't say. She never left, all because she wanted to make sure he was alright.

He was also reminded of the promise he made. He needed to tell Scott, especially after what happened with Theo.

Sierra exchanged glances with the boys when Hayden still hadn't responded. "Guess I'm breaking the door," she muttered, flicking her hand so red tendrils emerged from her palm.

But then the door opened.

They all widened their eyes at the girl in front of them.

She stood with her wavy hair covering half her face, her shaking fingers sprouting claws at the end. Fangs appeared in her mouth and her normal brown eyes were shining gold.

Hayden looked terrified, on the brink of tears.

"I believe you."

*^*^*^*^*^*

Across his relationship with Sierra, Stiles had seen her angry on multiple occasions.

Even when they were just friends, he saw it. The flash of irritation in her eyes, the slight crinkle between her eyebrows. Throwing her hands up as she ranted.

Stiles wanted to kiss her during these times, so she'd stop talking and breathe. Yet, as he sat on the edge of his bed, he knew kissing Sierra during this particular situation wouldn't do them any good.

She paced across his carpet, his cinnamon eyes following her with every sudden turn.

He kind of regretted waiting to tell her about Theo and Josh, but the time they talked to Hayden and safely took her home, it was too late. Sierra had been absolutely dead on her feet, Stiles thinking of the day's events when they got back to their houses.

Emotionally, Sierra rode a roller coaster. Then, when Scott told Stiles about her incident at the hospital, his concern only grew. That was the second time she passed out from using her powers.

Luckily, he didn't have to argue with her about staying up. When he snuck in through her window after changing clothes, she was already asleep. So, he kissed her hair and wrote a note with a promise to tell her about everything in the morning.

This led to her rushing over at six, shaking him awake with questions.

And the answers left her pissed.

Curses flew from her mouth, an old plaid shirt belonging to Stiles coating her arms and flapping around with every wave of her hand. Her hair was thrown up messily into a bun while her converse-covered feet kicked his desk chair.

"Who does he think he is?" she raged, but continued on without waiting for a response. "Blackmailing my boyfriend? I don't fucking think so. He screwed up. Big time."

"Okay, come here." Stiles interrupted her pacing, standing up and walking over to her. Sierra huffed as Stiles wrapped his arms around her waist, moving one hand behind her head. "You need to take a breath or you're going to pass out again."

Her voice was muffled from being pressed against his shoulder. "I freaking hate him," she growled.

Stiles pressed a gentle kiss to her dirty-blonde hair and hugged her tighter, resting his head on hers. "I know you do, string bean."

Sierra lifted her eyes so she could see him staring down at her. "How are you not angry right now?"

"You know I am just as frustrated as you are," he told her, brushing a piece of hair behind her ear. "But I only agreed to it because I didn't have a choice. If I told Scott about Josh, Theo would tell him about Donovan."

"You could tell Scott about both of them," Sierra suggested, and sighed when he frowned. "Stiles, you have to tell him. You're proving your trust by being honest, which will prove your point about Theo."

"Won't that just make him more mad though?" Stiles wondered.

Sierra retorted, "He's going to be a lot madder if you don't tell him at all. Stiles, if you agree to Theo's terms, then you're keeping another secret from Scott. Which means I'm keeping another secret from him too." Her face softened as she looked up at him. "He doesn't deserve that, we're his best friends."

"He hasn't been treating you like he's your best friend," Stiles pointed out, making her purse her lips. "Oh, come on, you know I'm right, Sierra. You said so yourself!"

"I did say that, you're right," Sierra agreed with a nod. "However, if I keep lying to him that's only proving what he's already thinking. I'm choosing to be the bigger person here, but I need your back on this."

"I always have your back, you know that."

"Then prove it."

*^*^*^*^*^*

Scott finally had a plan to protect Hayden. It wasn't full proof, then again none of their ideas ever were, but it would suffice.

He met Sierra and Stiles in the library later that morning, revealing a map and spreading it across a table.

Sierra studied it, before she recognized the marker coating the paper. It was the same map they used when the Darach started its sacrificial killings--and how they found the Nemeton.

"So we're back to telluric currents?" Stiles noticed as well, standing beside Sierra.

On Sierra's other side, Scott answered, "If the Dread Doctors didn't like coming into Eichen House because of them, maybe we can use them to protect Hayden."

Sierra remained silent, listening to Stiles ask more questions. The two boys were speaking as if it were a normal day; however, Sierra was growing annoyed by the lack of true communication.

Stiles still hadn't told Scott about the incident with Theo and Josh, or Donovan. He continued to push it aside, claiming there hadn't been a right time. Sierra knew he was scared, but prolonging the inevitability of Scott finding the truth only made matters worse.

Then, the truth alpha continued to ignore his confrontation with her. They only spoke when discussing the chimeras or protecting Hayden. Other than that, Scott ignored her. And Sierra couldn't lie to herself; it freaking hurt.

He was putting up a front for their other friends. Plastering a fake smile of assurance in order to stay focused. However, everyone knew something was wrong.

But no one spoke up about it.

"The strongest convergence besides Eichen is here," Scott said to Stiles, pointing to the high school where they stood. "If we have to, we can stay all night to protect Hayden. Her sister is working a double tonight and thinks Hayden is at a friend's house."

"This is just a school though," Sierra decided to join the conversation. If she hadn't, the boys would pester her until she did. "Remember when Peter trapped us here? It's not a fortress."

Scott nodded and replied, "I know, but Lydia's got an idea for that. Remember how Vallack quoted Tesla?"

"Frequency and vibration," Stiles recalled.

"She thinks he wasn't saying that just to sound smart," Scott told them. "She thinks maybe it was a clue."

Sierra furrowed her brows. "A clue to do what?"

"To disrupt their frequency." Scott saw their confused expressions and explained further. "Parrish took three cell phone jammers from the station. He thinks he can broaden their range of frequency."

"And what if he can't?" Sierra questioned, crossing her arms. "This sounds risky, Scott."

"It is a long shot," Scott admitted, "but it's the best we've got right now."

"You mentioned Lydia and Parrish," Stiles said, thinking of their friends. "But how do the rest of us fit into this?"

Scott rubbed his hands together--a sign of anxiety Sierra picked up on. "I figured me, Sierra and Lydia would stay in the locker room with Hayden and Liam. Parrish would be outside while Malia guarded the halls. And you, well..."

Stiles narrowed his eyes. "Well, what?"

"I know you don't like Theo," Scott started, noticing Stiles purse his lips, "but I was thinking you two could watch over Josh."

"What about Kira?" Sierra asked before Stiles could suggest a different role for himself. "You didn't mention her at all."

"Because I don't think she should be involved."

Sierra looked surprised. "You're kidding me, right?"

"No, I'm not kidding."

Sierra scoffed, rolling her eyes as she slung her bag over her shoulder. "Of course you're not, Scott. Have fun explaining everything to your girlfriend. I'm going to find Malia and tell her what's going on."

Stiles's mouth parted, while Scott inhaled sharply. Neither of them said anything at first; they just watched Sierra stalk out of the library.

After she disappeared, Scott exhaled and rested his arms on the table. "I should've known she wouldn't like the plan."

"I think she's more upset about how you're excluding one of our friends," Stiles informed as he pat Scott on the back. "Plus, you didn't really consult her, dude."

"I didn't consult her because I knew she wouldn't go through with it if I told her everything," Scott retorted.

"What do you mean?" Stiles looked at him, puzzled by his words. "There's more to the plan?"

"Yeah," Scott breathed out, straightening his back to face Stiles.

"Then what is it?"

Scott hesitated but knew Stiles needed to be informed. After all, he would be at the animal clinic that night with Theo instead of the school like the others. "If the plan works, I think we can trap them."

"I'm sorry?"

"The dread doctors," Scott clarified. "We could potentially trap one of them. it would let us figure out what they're trying to do and why."

Stiles stared at him, taking a moment to process the new information. Then, it clicked. "Scott, no. Tell me you're not thinking what I think you're thinking."

"What?"

"Using Hayden as bait," Stiles hissed, slapping his best friend on the arm. "That is a terrible idea!"

"It's the only idea we have," Scott shot back, keeping his voice low so other students wouldn't look their way. "I'm thinking of the greater good, Stiles."

Stiles shook his head. "I know you think you are, but you're not," Stiles disagreed. "You know how much Hayden means to Liam--and Sierra for that matter. She's going to find out, Scott, and when she does, it will not be pretty."

"She'll get over it," Scott pushed the guilt he felt away. "Especially when we catch one of them."

"And what if you don't?" Stiles inquired. "Then you're putting Hayden's life on the line. As well as the rest of our friends." Scott didn't respond, and Stiles sighed. "Look, man. I know you and Sierra are at odds right now, but keeping another secret from her isn't going to help."

Scott wanted to question him right then and there. Demand answers about Stiles's secrets with Sierra. Ask why he was telling him to be honest when he couldn't tell Scott the truth.

But Scott didn't get a chance.

The bell rang, and Stiles glanced at his watch.

"I gotta run," he told Scott, patting him on the shoulder. "But think about what I said. I don't like when you two fight." He offered Scott a small smile, before he left the library.

Scott watched him go and let out a heavy sigh.

"I don't like fighting with her either."

*^*^*^*^*^*

Later that night, Stiles begrudgingly walked inside the animal clinic.

The thought of spending time with Theo made him want to hurl, but it was better than staying at the school. Scott had a lot coming to him when Sierra discovered the rest of the plan; overall it was safer to keep distance from the duo at the moment.

"What's going on?" Theo's voice interrupted his thoughts.

Stiles jumped from his sudden appearance, but quickly relaxed and headed to the examination room. "Whoever is stealing the bodies probably isn't going to do it while we're standing guard over one of them," he answered over his shoulder.

Theo cinched his brows, confused. "So you got a better idea?"

Stiles held up his phone. "Yeah, I do." He set it on a metal shelf, pointing the camera to where Josh was on the table. Without a word, Stiles went back outside, leaving Theo no choice but to follow. "Sierra gave me her smart watch," he said next after climbing in his jeep. "It can sync up with my phone, meaning we can watch in there while staying out here."

"That's actually pretty clever," Theo nodded from the passenger seat, watching Stiles place the watch on the rear view mirror. "What happens now?"

"We wait."

The sun was already setting in Beacon Hills, but Stiles knew the time wouldn't fly by. Not when he only had Theo to keep him company.

"You wanna take shifts watching?" the beta asked him.

"No, no," Stiles replied wittily. "I want to spend some quality time with you." He sent Theo a sarcastic smile.

But Theo agreed.

"Sounds good to me."

*^*^*^*^*^*

Jemma Page decided she could no longer ignore the presence of the dread doctors.

She tried to not involve herself in the ordeal, because Sierra assured that she and Scott had it under control. However, when Stiles carried his unconscious girlfriend inside after a trip to Eichen, Jemma changed her mind.

When Sierra came home from school, Jemma wanted answers. And she got them.

Sierra spilled everything to her sister, needing a trusted individual to listen to her vent. The older empath quickly learned about the dread doctors, chimeras, and even the plan to protect Hayden. It was a lot to take in, but Jemma processed it faster than Sierra thought she would.

"Mom and Talia used to tell Derek and I stories about people like them," she told Sierra as they sat in the living room. Though Jemma hadn't experienced the supernatural scientists personally. Not yet anyways.

Nonetheless, she stepped forward to help. She wanted her sister to have her full support.

This led to the woman walking inside the hospital, where the sheriff said to meet him and Melissa. While the teenagers handled Hayden, the adults were going to focus on the chimeras.

Jemma smiled in polite greeting when she saw the pair, and they returned the gesture. "Hey, sorry I'm late."

"You're perfectly fine, Jemma," Noah assured her. He leaned against the welcome desk, where Melissa stood on the other side, and held up Vallack's novel. "I was just telling Melissa that I keep coming back to this...but I still don't have any leads."

"Did you have any repressed memories?" Jemma asked, keeping her voice quiet. "Sierra told me the visions they had weren't pretty."

"No," Noah sighed. "I haven't experienced anything. Which makes me wonder if I'm going about this in the wrong direction."

Melissa spoke up, confused. "What do you mean?"

"Well the whole time I've been looking at this, I've been thinking science fiction," he answered, glancing back down at the cover. "But they're not dread scientists...they're called Dread Doctors." His gaze shifted to Melissa, who raised her eyebrows.

"So now you're looking for a medical connection," the nurse concluded and he nodded.

"Or a medical diagnosis, yes."

Jemma cleared her throat, both of them turning to her expectantly. "Yeah, hi, now don't take this the wrong way, Papa Stilinski," she started, her hands in her pockets, "but then why do you need me here? I don't work at a hospital. I work at a law firm."

"I figured the more people we had working on this, the better," Noah explained his reasoning. "Plus, you have a knack for finding the needle in the haystack. I need to find the needle medically connecting Tracy, Lucas and Donovan."

"You're not asking me to hand over medical files without a court order, are you?" Melissa questioned the sheriff, resting her hand on her hip.

Noah's lips parted in surprise, but he shook his head slowly. "I would never ask you to do that."

"Good, because they may take away this key card." Melissa feigned innocence, pulling a badge from her pocket. "Which allows me access to those records." Melissa glanced between Noah and Jemma, a smirk on her lips. "Do you guys want to see how the key card works?"

"I would love to see how the key card works," Noah replied with a smile, Jemma nodding in agreement.

"Me too."

Melissa's smirk grew. She checked the area around her to see if anyone noticed her slipping away from the desk. "Follow me."

Noah and Jemma exchanged their own grins, happily high-fiving before following the nurse down the hall.

*^*^*^*^*^*

"We're betting out lives on these?" Malia asked before she could stop herself.

Her eyes stared down in disappointment into the trunk of Parrish's car. There sat the three police jammers the deputy rigged to extend to the dread doctors' frequency.

From beside Parrish, Lydia scrunched up her face. Earlier that afternoon, she worked with Parrish to get the devices ready. However, the longer she looked at them, the more uneasy she became.

"I think we're betting Hayden's life on them," the banshee sighed.

The moon hung over their heads, informing the trio they were running out of time. They needed to get the jammers set up as quickly as possible.

Parrish shrugged, leaning forward to grab them. "Yeah, well,  I'm glad I brought my gun."

They headed inside and split apart, each placing a box or two around the school. One went in the guidance office, another perched on top of lockers and a trophy case. The last one sat on the shelf in the boys' locker room, where Scott and Sierra brought Liam and Hayden.

After Lydia came back, the sophomores moved a case of lacrosse lockers in front of the door. Malia walked the inside perimeter with her eyes peeled, and Parrish remained outside. Then, everyone settled in.

Lydia approached Scott once half an hour passed, pulling him off to the side. She glanced around before speaking lowly. "Is it just me, or are their some people not aware of the second part of the plan?" Her green eyes flickered to their left.

Scott followed her gaze, puzzled, until his face softened. Sierra stood wearing a small smile, calmly chatting with Liam and Hayden on the other side of the room. He had told her to keep their anxieties at bay, and from what he saw, she was doing a good job.

He looked back over to Lydia, who crossed her arms and raised her eyebrows. Scott sighed, and replied honestly, "I'm not even sure that there's still going to be a second part."

"Or if it's going to work?" Lydia guessed, and he slowly nodded. "Well, that's reassuring."

Lydia shot him a warning glance as she saw Sierra move towards them out of the corner of her eye. She didn't want another fight to break out between her two friends. But she knew the duo needed to talk, so she stepped back.

Near the showers, Hayden braced her arms on the sides of a sink. Sierra had kept her mind settled for a while, distracting her by bringing up the times where Hayden would come to her house. It was crazy to think her mentor--the girl who helped her with math homework--could now read minds and create an earthquake with her bare hands. But Hayden felt safe.

However, now the true empath was conversing with Scott away from her. Hayden's anxiety rose at the thought of being vulnerable and she let out a shaky breath.

Liam noticed the shift in her chemo-signals, and spoke up. "You're going to be okay," he promised as she stared into the mirror with a frown. "You'll learn how to control your powers."

"I'm not like you, Liam," Hayden shook her head. "I wasn't bitten by a wolf, I was..." She hesitated to even say the truth. "I was somebody's science experiment."

Hayden couldn't help but continue to analyze her face, picturing her new set of eyes and sharp teeth. "This is so bizarre," she said, her head spinning.

"I know, but you're going to be okay," Liam replied, gazing at her with a certain look in his eyes. "I promise."

"What am I?" she whispered.

Liam offered her a smile as he said, "You're Hayden."

The girl caught his gaze in the glass of the mirror, her own lips flipping upwards. "By the way," she begun with rosy cheeks as she faced him, "if you get me out of this, I'll forget all about the sixth grade."

Sierra watched the sophomores from afar, sitting next to Scott on a bench. They hadn't said a word yet, but knew he was keeping an eye on the pair too. She gently nudged his shoulder.

Scott turned his head, an eyebrow raised expectantly.

"Those two," Sierra nodded her head towards Liam and Hayden. "They remind me of a couple I used to know."

"Is that so?" Scott forced out, his voice cracking. He didn't want to admit he saw the resemblance too; it only made his heart ache.

Sierra sighed, "Yeah. So adorable it's sickening. But they were some of my favorite people...still are to this day." She hesitated, but added, "They showed me the importance of love...and how it's always worth the fight."

Scott hummed, but stayed quiet as a moment passed.

"She would be proud of you, you know?" Sierra asked quietly. "Unbelievably proud."

Scott blinked back the tears starting to gather in his eyes. He glanced up at her, his head barely nodding. "Maybe, but she'd be proud of you too." The two exchanged soft smiles, before Scott let out a heavy breath. "Look, Sierra, about our fight--"

He cut himself off, his body tensing. His ears perked at the sound of something being dragged across the floor. He narrowed his eyes to his right, Sierra looking at him worriedly. "What is it?" she asked.

Scott didn't answer. He just rose to his feet and squinted into the darkness.

Down the row, on the corner, he saw...a leash?

"Scott," Sierra snapped him out of it, stepping in front of him. He blinked, the leash disappearing from his line of sight. "What's wrong with you?"

"Uh, I don't really--"

"Guys," Lydia's concerned voice made them turn. "I was just thinking that because we can't use our phones, we can't check in on Stiles and Theo."

Sierra's breath hitched. The idea never even crossed her mind. She was already uneasy about her boyfriend spending more one on one time with Theo, but now she felt her insides flip. "Oh my god, how did we not think of that?"

Scott swallowed hard. "That's, that's not good."

"I know," Lydia nodded, fear in her eyes. "So we're standing here waiting for guys in masks and breathing tubes to show up..."

Sierra understood immediately and looked up at Scott.

"But who, or what, are Stiles and Theo waiting for?"