Flares » Isaac Lahey [Book 3]

Chapter 23

Chapter 23 » venomous

The world around me seemed to blur into one. I could hear my own footsteps brushing through the leaves. Isaac's footsteps sounded behind me, along with his heavy breathing.

I paused, placing my palm against a tree trunk and catching my breath. I inhaled deeply, taking in the mixture of scents around us.

"We're probably not even in the right place," Isaac commented, stopping beside me.

"I had Scott's scent up until a couple of yards back," I said, taking in another deep breath. "He's somewhere around here."

"Look, why don't we go back to where you last had his scent and then try and follow it," Isaac suggested as I turned my head to look at him. He looked over at me, tilting his head to the side. "Maybe on the way we could, you know, discuss last night?"

Rolling my eyes, I started to move away from the tree. "Now is really not the time, Isaac."

"I'm just saying-"

In the distance, I saw a glowing, orange flame erupt and collide into something. I held my finger up, shushing him. "Hold that thought."

I took off running again, slowing down as a gunshot rang through the air, which was then followed by a dozen more. Two figures could be seen a few yards away, opposite Scott and Liam. I darted out from behind the trees as a puff of black smoke appeared, leaving a man in its place.

"La Bete Du Gevaudan!" That was a voice from the past. Gerard Argent. "I know your name! Do you remember mine?"

Isaac and I edged close enough to see the man turn around in disgust. "Argent," he sneered in a heavy French accent.

Without another word, he took off running, with deputy Parrish soaring after him. Scott and Liam rushed forwards, Scott asking, "Who the hell was that?"

Both of them seemed to lock eyes on me and Isaac at the same time as we stepped out of the shadows.

"You've seen the Beast of Gevaudan," Gerard said. "That was the man."

Chris glanced at his father. "Sebastien Valet."

A twig crunched underneath my foot and the two Argent's turned around. Gerard's sinister eyes brightened and his lips curled. "Shay Hale and Isaac Lahey."

I stepped forwards, looking between the four of them. "What the hell is this?"

"We found out who the beast is," Scott replied, his own eyes glancing between Isaac and I.

"Yeah, I got your texts," Isaac replied, holding his phone up. "So what do we do now?"

~

"Maybe there's something in here, something about how he was a Genetic Chimera," Scott said as he flicked through the book on the table. We were in the Animal Clinic trying to figure out more about Mason being able to shift into the beast. I, personally, was still struggling to get my head around the fact that it was Mason.

"Mason had a vanishing twin," Deaton informed, glancing between all of us.

"Now we've got a vanishing Mason," Stiles pointed out lamely, which caused Isaac to snort.

"What does that have to do with him turning into a 250 year old French guy?" Liam asked. "How does that even happen?"

"Hold on, Scott might have something," Deaton said, holding his hand up. "Mason's twin wasn't entirely gone. That's what made him a Genetic Chimera."