Creatures ~ Jackson Whittemore [Book 2]

Power

Scott and Stiles paused as they walked into the lobby of the police station. Looking rather out of place, Darren was fidgeting in one of the wooden chairs, waiting to talk to an officer. Despite having already dug himself a deep hole with his mother because of his newly acquired restraining order, Scott nudged his head in the direction of his best friend's little brother. Melissa nodded, giving him the go ahead to approach the anxious looking boy.

"Darren." The brunette flinched in his seat. His head whipped up, but his face fell in disappointment when he saw it was Scott and Stiles.

He huffed and crossed his arms defensively. "What are you two doing here?"

"Just uh- visiting my dad." Stiles stuttered out. The youngest Williams didn't need to know what really had them hanging around the police station.

An awkward silence fell over the trio. Even though they had known Maya since they were kids, neither male had ever really interacted much with her brother outside of the Williams household. He was rather stoic as he regarded them, not offering any explanation to his own presence in the station.

Scott cocked his head slightly to the side as he listened to the increasing heart rate of the boy. Something was bothering his, something that was making him angry. "Are you okay?" Scott asked him carefully, not wanting to ignite the infamous temper the Williams siblings shared.

Darren grunted, not offering any answers. Stiles rolled his eyes at the unhelpful behavior, already annoyed with the boy. "Really? The silent treat? How mature." The spastic teen muttered impatiently. Still in a sour mood from the restraining order, this wasn't helping improve his mood.

"Sorry, I didn't realize I had to explain myself to the two idiots who ruined my sister's life." Darren bit back. Both males froze up at the accusation, which didn't go unnoticed by Darren. "You guys start acting weird and calling her away from home late at night. Then she gets attacked by some animal." He brought his fingers up in air quotes as he said the last word. "She goes missing from the hospital in a fugue state caused by PTSD and now she hasn't come home."

"Dar-"

The boy held up a hand. "Save it McCall. I don't need to hear your excuses. I'm just here to report my sister missing since my dads are too in denial to realize that she isn't just staying with a friend."

This was bad. Maya had already busted Jackson out for some reason unbeknownst to them and Allison overheard that a mysterious girl had attacked a hunter out in the woods. If Darren reported her missing, then someone else might get hurt. Because whatever happened to Maya, whatever was going on inside of her head to make her act this way, it had made her dangerous.

Scott plopped himself down in one of the chairs next to Darren and Stiles took the other. The boy was effectively sandwiched between his sister's two best friends. Now he was fidgeting even more, completely uncomfortable in this newfound situation.

"We can't let you do that Darren." Stiles told him bluntly.

His eyebrows furrowed a mixture of confusion and anger. "Why the hell not?"

"Because...?" Stiles looked over the fuming boy's head to Scott for some assistance.

"There are things you don't know about your sister, Darren." Scott started "It's not our secret to tell. That's something for Maya to do when and if she's ready for you to know. But, I need you to trust me when I say that your sister is okay. I won't let anything bad happen to her."

"Funny," Darren mused aloud. "plenty of bad things have already happened. Where were you? Where were you when all of those bad things were happening to my sister?"

"Reporting Maya missing isn't what she wants. She just needed time away to clear her head and she didn't want you or your dads worrying about her again." Stiles lied to the boy, trying to backtrack from Scott's idiotic mistake. "You know how stupid she can be about things like this....but it's how she copes."

"J-Just tell her I miss her....and that I'm worried." Darren uttered softly to the two teens. He quickly brought his sleeve up and rubbed at his eyes. "Tell her to come home."

"We will." Scott told the boy, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder.

"Don't let anything else happen to my sister." Darren got up from the chair and eyes the two males carefully. When both of them nodded, he shook his head slightly. He couldn't believe that he was trusting his sister's friends after everything they had gotten her involved in. But for some reason Maya trusted them, so he might as well have a little trust in them too.

Scott tiredly rubbed a hand over his face once Darren left. His shoulders sagged and Stiles knew the guilt was weighing heavily on the werewolf. He blamed himself for not knowing what was happening with their friend. And on top of Maya's disappearance, they still had Jackson to worry about.

"We'll figure this out Scott."

"How?" The werewolf asked. Exhaustion was clear on his face as he turned to look at his pale friend. "We don't know what's wrong with Maya. We have no clue how to stop Jackson. And we have no idea who is controlling him. Plus we have to worry about the Argents and Derek."

"I don't know, but we will figure it out Scott.....We always do." His best friend assured him.

.........................................

While her friends scrambled around trying to figure out how to stop Jackson, Maya was content to practice her powers in her favorite spot at the lake in the Preserve. School was a waste of time that couldn't teach her anything more than some trivial facts and skills. They couldn't teach her about power, how to instill fear in to everyone around you with a single glance.

"You are getting quite good."

Maya smirked as she twirled an ice ball on the tip of her finger. It was taking her less and less time to freeze things now. The natural talent she had after giving herself over to the power hidden underneath the surface was astonishing. And to think she had been afraid of the measly powers a mermaid possessed. Those silly parlor tricks didn't even scratch the surface of what a siren could do.

"I had a pretty decent teacher." Maya smirked. With a effortless flick of the wrist, the ice went careening towards Peter.

The man tilted his head to the side, just barely avoiding the blow. Shards of ice shot out into the air as it made contact with a tree a few feet from the bank of the lake. Peter's red eyes held a look of mirth as he turned back to the siren floating in the water. Looking so innocent, nothing betraying just how dangerous the creature before him was.

"Though I do believe that I've outgrown you. Your services will no longer be required."

"Now, now, Maya. Let's not be too hasty." Peter chided her as if she were a young child. "Do you really think I told you everything? How foolish of you to believe that I would give up my leverage. I still need something from you and I can't have you trying to ruin my plans now."

Maya glared up at the man as she swam closer to the shore. It was an unspoken threat being held above her head. Something Peter knew about her that she didn't and Maya wasn't a fan of that little plot twist.

"I see you've reevaluated the situation." Sharp canines poked out from beneath his lip as the man smirked.

"What do you need me to do?" Maya warily asked the werewolf.

"All in good time, Maya. All in good time. Just keep giving in to the siren's call and I'll let you know when it's time to pay up." He sent her another crooked grin that sent a chill running down her spine. Those blood red eyes locked onto her green ones and held them in an unwavering gaze.

Just as soon as he appeared, he had vanished. This left Maya alone to ponder what exactly Peter was hiding from her. As her brain angrily sorted through the possibilities, the water around her boiled in response to her emotions. Even in the heat of her anger, she couldn't help but admire the bubbling of the dark water surrounding her. This was her power and no one could ever take it from her.