No Good Deed | Hale - TVD/TO/TW [3]

24 | Change of Leadership

Lexi gasps awake, her eyes flying open as adrenaline surges through her. As she sits up, her head hits another, causing her to yelp. Derek groans as he holds his forehead; he moves away and allows Lexi to sit up fully. The moment the throbbing in his temple stops, his hands press against her stomach once more.

A weak whimper escapes her lips as she looks at the door. "Scott?" She calls out. "What the hell are you doing here?"

The teenager's eyes focus on her wound; fear fills the boy as he sees Lexi's pale face and bleeding gut. "What happened to you? Are you gonna be ok?" He asks. "Derek, is she gonna be ok?"

"I don't know," Derek snaps, sending a glare towards Scott before he looks back at her. "What happened to you?"

"Ran into Kate," Lexi says. With a low groan, she attempts to push herself to her feet. She only succeeds in Derek forcing her back down. "Come on, I'm fine."

Derek stares at her with concern in his eyes. "You're bleeding out."

"I'll be fine."

This time, she does get to her feet, making sure to lean forward against Derek's hands. She pants as blood drips down her skin; she can hear the sizzling of the vervain in her system interacting with her body. With a whimper, she tries to wipe it away.

With his eyes on her movements, Derek attempts to help. He can see the burns left by the blood. "What the hell?" He mutters.

"I can't fight like this," Lexi says. "I'm screwed. God, I hate Kate."

"Don't we all," Derek mutters. "What did she get you with? What is this?"

"Vervain," she replies. "I'm allergic."

"Your blood is black," Scott exclaims. "Just like Derek's was when he was shot. Which means you're not human."

Lexi sends Scott a glare; she can feel Derek's eyes on her as the pressure of his heads lessen. "I'll be fine," she says again. "Just a little wound. Nothing I haven't dealt with before—" Her voice dissolves into a whimper as more vervain-infected blood pours down her stomach.

"What are you?" Derek whispers. "This? This is not human."

"Do you trust me?" She meets his gaze—her blue eyes melding with his green ones. "Do you trust me, Derek?" He barely dips his head. "Then trust that I will tell you when you need to know."

After a moment, the pressure of his hands return.

"What's the plan?" She asks, looking between them. "I'm pretty much out of commission for the next few minutes. I've got to get the vervain out of my system..." Glancing down at the wound, she pulls away from Derek's hands; instead of answering his questioning gaze, Lexi digs her fingers into the blood.

With a yelp, she continues to push against the wound, ignoring as the wolves yell at her to stop. She can feel the vervain slipping away, but it is not quick enough. "Shut up," she snaps. "If I want to heal, I have to do this."

"We need to go, now." Derek wraps his arm around her waist, supporting her weight as they stumble out of the room. The moment they pass under the large metal door, Lexi exhales softly as her muscles relax. She presses her head against his shoulder, barely able to focus on Scott leading them from the basement.

As the house once again comes into view, Lexi tenses next to Derek. He pauses and looks down at her as she glances around the woods. "Wait, something's not right," she says.

"What do you mean?" Scott asks.

"I mean, what I said," Lexi snaps. "Getting out of there... It doesn't make any sense. Only two hunters watching a werewolf—a Hale, no less. And Kate knows I'm here. It's almost like—"