Scott McCall's Arc

Chapter 17 of 30

The smoke was gone, but the air still felt heavy. Then a low echo rolled through the loft, and a force pushed everyone back a step. In the middle of the ash ring stood Malik Kane. Trapped. He pressed his hand against the empty air and it sparked gold under his palm. Scott was on his feet first. Kira grabbed the staff and held it tight. Derek moved to the circle's edge, fists ready. Stiles stayed back, jaw set, counting jars under his breath like the numbers might keep him steady. "The killings stop with you," Scott said. Malik shook his head, calm. "You still think I'm doing this." Derek pressed. "Then explain the bodies." Malik's eyes went to the coins in their hands. "Were they marked?" Lydia's fingers closed tight around hers. "Why does that matter?" "Because if they were," Malik said, "they were already being hunted." Stiles stepped forward. "By who?" Malik hesitated — the first crack Scott had ever seen in him. "Something older than me." Scott moved closer to the ash line. "Then what are you?" Malik looked straight at him. "A warning." The room went still. "The coins aren't a threat," he added. "They're the only reason you're still alive." Scott looked at Stiles. Stiles wouldn't meet his eyes — he was staring at his own empty palm, the place a coin used to sit. "I threw mine away," Stiles said, quiet. "In the water. I didn't tell you." His voice tightened. "I thought I was protecting you. I wasn't." Kira reached for Scott's hand. Lydia held her coin out flat, like she was seeing it new. Scott turned back to the circle. "Then we let you out. And you show us what's coming." Derek's head snapped around. "Scott —" "He's not the predator," Scott said. "He's the one who knew it was here." He knelt and broke the ash line with two fingers. Malik stepped free. The staff in Kira's hands hummed once and went quiet. Outside the high windows, something heavy moved across the roof, and did not leave.