Mischief

Chapter Seven

This fic has some quite heavy topics like mental health, panic attacks, violence, murder, drugs, sex, human trafficking and r*pe (not described, only referenced/insinuated and talked about), so MAJOR TRIGGER WARNING.

NOW

-Tuesday 1:35 pm- Danny

I watch Stiles' expression as he finishes telling me about what initially happened to him. I can't even fathom what was going through his mind when he was first taken by Theo. I mean, when this was happening I was worrying about my lacrosse game for God's sake.

"Stiles," I say as calmly as I can, "I would strongly recommend you don't return to The Gallery. It would be incredibly dangerous for you."

He begins violently shaking his head, face scrunching up bitterly. "No. No! I have to go, you son't understand what's at stake if I don't."

I frown. "What are you talking about?"

He can't even respond because he starts hyperventilating. Without a second thought, I slide out of my side of the booth and into his, right beside him. "Hey," I soothe, wrapping an arm around him and pulling him close. "It's okay, Stiles. Just breathe. You don't have to answer anything you don't want to, okay? I just need you to follow my breathing. That's all."

I see a hint of a nod from him before his breathing slows and is now resting fully against me.

"Feeling better?" I ask and he nods. "Alright, I think it's time we head back to the station. What do you say?"

He sighs but nods again. "Yeah. I guess so."

"Great!" I say cheerfully, standing up and pulling Stiles with me. "Let's get going."

Stiles isn't in a great mood right now, but I don't blame him. Not only did he have a panic attack, but I wouldn't be too upbeat if I had to tell someone a horrific situation that I suffered through for five years either.

He's a seriously strong person. But... I wonder how much of his outer persona reflects his inner-self?

-1:57 pm- Danny

As soon as we enter the situation, Stiles makes a beeline to his dad's office. I don't worry about this though, he's probably just tired and needs a break.

"Hey Danny," Derek says, tucking his hands into his front pockets and raises his shoulders.

He must be trying to psyche himself up to ask me a question.

"Derek, just ask me what you're stressing over."

"Right," he says, eyes widening and eyebrows raising. "Yes. Um..." He coughs. "How did the lunch go?'

"Ah," I say with a nod. "How about we take this to the break room for privacy. Bring Scott and the sheriff, I'll go get set up."

"Um... we're not going to-"

"I'm not discussing anything personal that Stiles wouldn't want his dad to know. I value my patients privacy, I am a professional. Trust me."

"Of course. Thank you."

I nod and head to the break room to figure out how I'm going to word what needs to be said.

The three walk in just when I'm fully ready to speak, and I greet them with a smile. "Sit down, please, we need a serious discussion about Stiles and what needs to be done for him now."

They nod and take a seat on the couch that Stiles was sitting on this morning.

"Stiles is severely damaged by what happened to him and it's something that will stay with him for the rest of his life. However, I believe with professional help and a strong support system, that he'll be able to reintegrate and continue his life as best he can."

"Okay," John breathes out. "Where do we start?"

"I would seriously, and this is my professional way of insisting, suggest that he no longer associates himself with his workplace and especially his abductor and main abuser."

Derek looks over at John, clearly anticipating his reaction.

"You think I didn't know he was abused? It's a given considering how long he was gone. We need to remove him from that place immediately."

Derek sighs and leans forward, resting his elbows on his knees. "I'm all for that," he starts, "but Stiles refuses to leave The Gallery, and I don't know why."

"He did make us promise to save the other victims at The Gallery which are all the other performers there," Scott says.

"True," Derek says and I nod, taking in that information.

"Maybe he's insisting on going to keep them safe," I say.

"It's possible," John says. "Stiles is now under the protection of the police, so, if he continues working there, Theo is essentially trapped and it will give us the only opportunity to save his other victims."

"While that is good," I say, "it could also spur Theo on to act out badly. This could potentially put Stiles in more danger."

"I've already talked to Sheriff," Derek says and John nods. "Boyd will be going to The Gallery at every shift in order to keep an eye on Stiles."

"Why Boyd?" Scott asks.

"Because you and I are already known there as police. Boyd has no known association with Stiles."

"Yes, in fact, he's already there," John says. "We wanted to limit suspicion, so Boyd turning up before Stiles' shift makes it less conspicuous."

"That's good," I say with a nod. "Theo could very easily become a wild animal cornered. He might do anything he can to get out of that corner." Preventative measures are crucial in any situations like this.

The three nod and Derek sighs again. "I just hop this is enough to successfully keep him safe until we're prepared to get them all out."

"It's a valid concern," I say, nodding, "but this is the best we can do for the moment."

"We just need to make sure we deal with this ASAP," John says. "Stiles' life is literally on the line right now."

"Absolutely," Scott says. "I say that we get the whole station prepared to get in there and rescue them all and arrest Theo and everyone else there."

"Slow your roll, kid," John says and I bite back a smile. "We need more evidence and proof. Stiles' statement is enough for an arrest but not a conviction or rescue. He wants us to save everyone, and I agree. It's crucial for an investigation like this."

Scott is very new to this job, so he's learning as he goes. Having a leader like John will definitely shape his career into something great.

"We need to find a way to get other victims to give their statements, as well as physical evidence like audio or visual recordings. It's important that we get impenetrable evidence. We don't know who might be on Theo's side," Derek adds.

"Stiles will need to help us with that," I say. "He has ease of access to all of that. But, he needs to be very careful when doing so. But I'm sure he's already aware of this."

Derek nods. "He definitely does, he knew that Theo was probably listening in on the call he made to me last night."

There's a knock at the front door that breaks up our discussion. I go over it and open it, immediately seeing Stiles. "Hi Stiles, what's up??"

"Um," he rubs the back of his neck, "my shift starts soon, so I need to get back to Derek's place and grab my work clothes."

"Derek," John says and we all turn to him, "if you don't mind, I'd like to take Stiles. I want to go over everything we've discusses, only thing related to the investigation though. Don't worry."

After John's reassurance, Derek agrees. I let out a relieved breath, glad that John just wants to be around Stiles. I think he knows that Stiles doesn't want him to know.

Honestly? From what I know, I wouldn't want my parents to know either, and I've only just scraped the surface of what Stiles has gone through. So, yeah, I hope John continues to respect Stiles' space and needs.