Morningstar

47

Luci laid on the couch, staring at the ceiling.

Corey pointed to a black mark on the ceiling. "That's how he got in?"

"What is this?" Scott wondered.

"It's a point of impact from a lightning strike," Mason replied. "Usually you'd find charred spots like that on the ground after a violent thunderstorm."

"That's how the Ghost Rider got in. He rode lightning," Scott realized.

Liam glanced at them. "If they can use the lightning to get past the Mountain Ash... No place is safe."

"What about the others?" Corey wondered. "It's my fault they're marked."

Luci shook her head. "We'll do our best to figure out some way to protect him."

Scott and Luci met up with Lydia and Malia. Lydia showed them an ID card. "It's a relic."

Malia frowned. "What's a relic?"

"An object with a fixed association to the past. Jake's ID was left behind after he was taken. And Gwen found her sister's bracelet on her bedroom floor."

Scott frowned. "How can a person can be erased and leave something behind?"

"A conservation of mass," Luci explained as she took the ID card. "The total mass of any isolated system remains constant."

Malia nodded slowly. "So even the Ghost Riders have a weakness."

Luci flicked her eyes to Lydia as she said, "If we find a relic, we have proof that Stiles existed."

Scott nodded. "And maybe we can bring him back."

Luci and Lydia made their way back to the Stilinski household and the sheriff frowned. "You want to search my house."

Luci nodded. "People are leaving things behind. Relics. So if Stiles left anything..."

"Why, why would it be there?" the sheriff asked.

Lydia narrowed her eyes. "You can't just erase people. There's always something they leave behind."

Sheriff Stilinski sighed. "I couldn't sleep last night. So, um, I got up, figured I'd do some paperwork. The files were in the back of the car. So, I, I go to the garage, and some junk has fallen off a shelf and I, I stubbed my toe on an old baseball bat. Without thinking, I yelled a name..."

"Stiles."

Lydia walked through the house and Claudia walked up to her. "Is there anything I can do to help?"

Lydia shook her head. "No. Thanks, though."

"Good luck," Claudia sighed. "I'll leave you to it."

Lydia turned, hearing a voice. "Can you see me?"

She looked closer at the wallpaper and looked around, making sure no one was coming. She grabbed a corner of the wallpaper and started peeling it back. Claudia rushed in and grabbed her wrist, causing Lydia to grab Claudia's.

"What are you doing?" Claudia demanded.

Lydia frowned. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have done that."

"I think that's something we can agree on."

Lydia ran off, followed by Luci, and they made their way to the school.

Ms. Martin walked up to the two and frowned at her daughter. "Were you tearing Claudia Stilinski's wallpaper?"

Lydia nodded. "Yes."

She sighed. "Lydia, I'm getting concerned about your mental health."

"I'm fine. I heard a voice that sounded familiar. No one else heard it."

Ms. Martin frowned. "Well, if Claudia is not hearing ghosts, maybe it's because she's not crazy."

"Stiles isn't a ghost."

"Sweetie, Stiles doesn't exist."

Lydia glared at her mom. "I'm not crazy. I was trying to find something Stiles left behind. I was looking for a relic."

"Did you?"

Luci shook her head. "No. Mrs. Stilinski made her leave before she could find anything."

"Probably because you were tearing her wallpaper. Oh, sweetheart. I've known Claudia since high school. I trust her."

Lydia nodded. "Do you know what a confirmation bias is? The tendency to interpret information in a way that confirms a existing preconception."

Ms. Martin nodded. "Yes. It's a biased preconception."

"You're looking for proof to support what you already believe is true."

"Because you want it to be true," Ms. Martin replied.

Luci pursed her lips. "Stiles is real."

"But do you believe there's a possibility he's not?"

Lydia looked to her mother. "Luci believes he's real, and so do I."

The three of them headed to the hospital and explained to Melissa why they were there.

Melissa frowned. "You want what? You want what?"

"Claudia's medical records," Luci replied. "Just for a minute. Please, Melissa. We know it's a lot to ask."

"It's up there. It's way up there."

Ms. Martin smiled a little. "As the more recently enlightened of the three of us, trust me. There are lives at stake."

Melissa sighed. "Letting the three of you look at private medical records is completely and utterly against hospital regulations. So, we better make this fast."

She looked up Claudia's records on the computer. "Sorry, guys. According to her medical records, Claudia never had children."

"Well, but she had..." Lydia began.

"Frontotemporal dementia," Melissa finished. "There must be a mistake."

"Well she seems fine now."

They looked at the records and Ms. Martin frowned. "Ten years? I'm surprised she's still alive, honestly. It's a miracle."

Argent was wheeled in and Melissa left. They rushed out and saw Scott and Malia.

Scott stood next to Luci and she asked, "Diagnosis?"

Melissa frowned. "He has blunt force trauma to his temporal bone, three broken ribs, and multiple surface lacerations which see to be from whip marks? What he needs is a lot of rest."

"What happened?" Lydia wondered.

Malia raised her eyebrows. "The Ghost Riders took everyone. We barely even slowed them down."

Scott turned to Luci and Lydia. "Tell us you found something."

Lydia let out a sigh. "Well, we found out that Claudia never had children, so Stiles can't be her son."

"What about a relic?" Malia asked as Lydia and Luci shook their heads. "There never was a Stiles, was there?"

"It doesn't even sound like a real name," Scott mumbled.

Luci glanced at Lydia before she spoke. "We have to keep looking. Check the school records again. Or call Scott's dad..."

Malia shook her head. "We're fighting the wrong battle."

Luci frowned and sniffled. "We're trying to get Stiles back. He's real. We won't give up on him."

Malia looked between them. "The Ghost Riders came back. We have no way of stopping them. And whatever they are, they're real. We can't keep chasing someone who isn't."

"He didn't leave anything behind," Scott said.

"Just us," Lydia and Luci said.