The Stella Argent - Stiles Stilinski {Book 2}

Chapter 4

I sat on Scott's bed, staring at both of them, trying to process what they had just told me.

"So, you bit him," I stated.

"Yeah," Scott responded.

"And you kidnapped him," I added.

"Yeah," he replied a bit slower this time.

"And brought him here," I continued.

"I panicked," Scott shrugged.

Getting up from the bed, I made my way to the bathroom, peering down at the frightened boy I had never seen before.

"Who is this?" I asked. Stiles came up behind me, but I instinctively took a few steps away from him and briefly glanced at him, noticing hurt in his eyes. He looked down at the kid.

"Um, his name is Liam Dunbar. He's a freshman," Stiles said softly.

"Yup. This isn't going to end with us burying pieces of his body out in the desert, is it?" I joked, watching Liam's eyes widen as he started squirming. I couldn't help but smile at his reaction.

"Stella," Stiles chuckled, shaking his head. For a moment, I almost forgot about the gravity of the situation just by hearing his laughter.

I quickly exited the bathroom and sat next to Scott, fidgeting with my hands.

"Just a reminder, this is why I always come up with the plans. Your plans suck," Stiles remarked, looking down at the frightened boy before returning to the room.

"I thought I made it clear: don't call me unless it involves Kate," I asserted, crossing my arms, still feeling upset about the significant deception.

"I know, Stiles told me, but I just didn't know what to do," Scott admitted, his voice trembling slightly. His wavering tone only exacerbated my guilt for being so cold toward them, even if their actions warranted it. "That's why I called Stiles and you. You guys work great together," Scott sighed. I glanced over at Stiles, finding him already looking at me. He offered a small smile, but I looked back down at my hands.

Realizing we couldn't keep Liam restrained in the tub indefinitely without an explanation, we moved him into the room, still tied up with tape over his mouth.

"Liam, we're going to take the tape off your mouth. If you scream, it goes right back on. If you talk quietly, it stays off. Understand?" Stiles instructed. Liam nodded hesitantly, and as Stiles removed the tape, Liam groaned in pain.

"Okay, Liam, you've seen a lot of confusing things tonight. And more confusing things will happen because of the confusing things that happened tonight. Do you understand?" Stiles asked, receiving a confused response from Liam.

"Not really," Liam admitted.

"Good. That's good," Stiles acknowledged, realizing he wasn't getting anywhere with the conversation.

"I don't understand either," Scott admitted, looking equally perplexed.

"Maybe you should tell him," Stiles suggested, turning to me.

"Tell me what?" Liam looked at me, his eyes curious.

"Liam, what happened to you, what Scott did to you, it's going to change you," I said softly, trying to brace him.

"Unless it kills you," Stiles muttered, earning a swift hit in the stomach from me. He groaned on the floor.

"What?" Liam's eyes widened, tears welling up.

"Uh-oh. Is he... Is he crying?" Stiles quickly got up, concerned.

"Liam, it's okay. You're going to be all right," I reassured, but he couldn't stop crying.