Scott McCall's Arc

Chapter 4 of 9

Morning came too fast. Scott walked into history class with the looking glass zipped in his bag and five nights of waiting pressing on his shoulders. He slid into his usual seat and pulled two desks closer, waving Kira and Lydia in. Stiles dropped down across from him. The four desks made a small island near the back of the room. Scott kept his voice low. He slid his phone across the wood. The screen showed the bestiary page, hieroglyphs glowing around a jackal-headed figure. "Deaton named it," he said. "Anubite." "Anubis?" Lydia whispered. "The Egyptian god of death? Funerals?" Stiles shook his head fast. "Anubite. Not the god. Just marked by him." Lydia let out a breath. "Right. That makes me feel so much better." Kira leaned over the phone, eyes fixed on the picture. "And there's nothing we can do until Friday?" Kira asked. "The new moon?" Scott nodded. "We're gonna have to tough this one out." Lydia tapped the desk. "Friday is the lacrosse game." Scott's eyes met Stiles'. First game of the season. They couldn't miss it. "We'll work that out later," Kira said quietly. Kira looked back at the screen. Her hand drifted to her jacket pocket. Slowly, she pulled out a small dark coin and set it on the desk. A jackal snarled up from the metal, ringed by a carved gate. Stiles went still. Scott's stomach dropped. The same coin. She had one too. "Scott. Kira. Anything you'd like to share with the class?" Mr. Yukimura stood at the front, chalk in hand, watching them. Kira's fingers closed over the coin. "Nothing, sir," Scott said. He turned forward. The plan had just doubled. Now there were two people to keep alive until Friday.