Review 200, woop woop.! ;D This is such an emotional rollercoaster, omg. I was crying during Stiles' torture scenes. ㅠ.ㅠ ㅠ.ㅠ I predict the Calaveras teaming up with Stiles Scott and Derek, though, so that's going to be interesting. ;D I hope Kate and Gerard die a horrible flaming death. Or are tortured by the Calaveras and then set on fire. That would be more fitting for them. Ugh. Seriously hate them so friggen much. On the plus side, I hope Allison becomes her usual badass self after this and gets revenge on them too. The canon scene where she breaks down after her mom killed herself was super heartbreaking so I'm rooting for her to get her revenge.! :) Thank you for the fic, good luck with future chapters, I can't wait to find out what happens next. :)

OMG you've really thought everything out I'm kind of scared to find out how this is all going to end.

So that's how things are going to be! :) Can't wait to fins out where this story ends up

This story is genius! I swear. It took my whole day off to read it all and I have to say it's one of the best I've read in a while. I hope u didn't abandon it cause I will literally cry...seriously. please tell me you'll finish it cause I know the suspense is going to kill me ; _ ;

Holy moly, what a ride. Your fic is so different, captivating and well written, it is so much fun to read and I was hanging at your every word. I really love that story line you came up with. It's so brilliant. And all the h/c and the angst. Would so love to read more, so I hope you haven't given up on this yet.

Here comes the final/fifteenth part of the review of chapter seventeen.

“Kate fixed him with a knowing look as they re-entered the drawing room. "For your sake, I hope you believe that more than I do," she said as she poured herself a new drink.

She silently offered one to Chris, and this time he did not refuse. He sighed as he accepted the glass. "A little incentive might be helpful," he admitted. "Allison's very in love with that boy, Scott. She'd do a lot in exchange for his safety."

Kate was smart enough to know when she was being maneuvered, but also seemed to expect it in this instance. "Maybe so, but then who is to make him be sensible?"

Chris took a sip of the perfectly aged whiskey. It was too easy, too familiar having this kind of discussion with Kate. Combined with the familiar surroundings and the burn of the alcohol tracing down his throat, it made him feel unpleasantly like the past years had been nothing but a dream and he'd never escaped, never lived any other way.

"The boy doesn't really know anything but wild stories and conjecture. I'd be very much surprised if any of them have any kind of proof of anything, even Hale, at this point," he reasoned, even though he knew that wasn't the problem. Kate liked to argue and she was always more amenable after feeling like she'd won a point. Give her something that was easy to shoot down and she'd be less inclined to find fault with following suggestions.

Predictably, Kate rolled her head and gestured in exaggerated disbelief. "Proof, schmoof! You know better than that, Chris. Don't tell me you've gotten soft and stupid while you were out playing soccer dad in Mayberry. Nobody is worried about what could be proved in a court of law. By the time it got anywhere near that stage the damage would have already been done. This is the internet age, brother dear. Controlling the media is not what it once was, and anyway, there are too many competing factions at cross purposes and too many people who would love to hurt the old man. This is an election year in case you hadn't noticed. Certain stories get to the wrong ears, or into the wrong hands, and it could cause trouble."”

Oh, oh, I don’t like where this is going, damn, but I guess, he’s to pretend for a while, but he should be careful, so that the game he plays won’t become too real. Okay, so he trying to soften her, before he goes in for the “kill” (make his move). After all he knows how she works, which also means she knows how he works in return; therefore, he should tread very carefully, I think!

He definitely hasn’t, he’s just biding his time, which I approve of very much, I must say, laughs! Although the internet age is wonderful, you’ll still need to have proof of the crime in question, but I guess, I know what she means, because all someone has to do is to spread a rumor online and that’s pretty much it, it doesn’t really matter if it’s true or not, most likely someone’s going to believe it and by then the damage is done, so…

“Chris knew better than to argue the relatively small odds of that happening. His father always said that when dealing with threats, the only odds he wanted to hear were zero, and he had beaten that into his children quite thoroughly.

Chris tossed back the rest of his drink in one go. "Scott has a mother," he said quietly. "Whom he loves very much."

Kate regarded him thoughtfully. "Yes, I'm aware," she said after a moment. "Chris, I know where you're going with this, but I can't make any promises. This situation has gotten quite out of hand already and you know how the old man feels about unnecessary loose ends. I know the way you like to operate - the deals, the leverage, the pressure points and counter-leverage ... but I have to warn you, father isn't going to be in a giving mood. This is a particularly bad time, even without the election stress," she warned him, her voice dipping into conspiratorial tones.

"The Calaveras are making a move and have carved some significant inroads into our operations. We lost almost half the Mexican trade last month and they're going hard after the Columbian corridor. You can bet we're fighting back, but the point is, they are poised to pounce on any possible weakness. Tell anybody I told you that and I'll cut your balls off," she warned with a pleasant smile, meaning every word. "But I think you need to understand the stakes here, Chris, and why there just cannot be any liabilities tolerated right now. I'm pretty damn sure that the Calaveras' haven't caught wind of our little Hale problem yet, but they would certainly exploit the hell out of it if they did and the old man..." she shook her head and gave him another dry smile. "Paranoid, remember?"”

Well, it sound like it can’t be an easy life for Gerard Argent! Not that I envy him, because that man deserves every bad things that comes to him and then some, that’s for sure, laughs!

“"Wonderful." Chris set his glass down on the sideboard, already wishing for another drink but knowing he needed to keep his head clear. He knew Kate was in fact trying to assist and protect him in her own way by giving him a full picture to work with. They had been close, once. It had never been a particularly normal or healthy relationship, but growing up like they did, sometimes it felt like all they really had was each other. He wasn't sure Kate had ever really forgiven him for getting married and moving out to start his own family. He wasn't sure he'd ever really forgiven himself for not trying harder to save her from their father, even if she hadn't seem to want to be saved. That was the most difficult thing about his whole screwed up family. He couldn't completely hate them all the time, even when he knew he should. He was too used to going along, to working within the system his father had created because that was the only way to be safe, a lesson which had been drilled into him, sometimes painfully so, from a very young age.

He slid his hands into his pockets and his fingers brushed against the shape of whatever it was that Allison had slipped him a few minutes ago. One touch, and he knew instantly what it was, and what message it was meant to convey.

"Maybe,"Kate allowed slowly. "Maybe, Allison's little boyfriend can be spared, but you'll need to talk to father about it when he gets in. He's on his way out right now, should be here any minute. That's how serious this is. You understand, now?"

Chris felt a sick little lurch in his stomach that was old, familiar, and very unwelcome; the one that had always accompanied knowledge of his father's imminent arrival and displeasure. It was amazing how the smallest things could make you feel nine years old again.

He nodded grimly, his fingers curling around the smooth, worn object in his pocket. "Yes," he said. "I understand perfectly."”

Yeah, it really must be hard for him, with him not being able to hate his sister and his dad completely. And I must say that I really love to hate Kate (especially if she’s trying to help him, in her own special way, of course), because she’s a strong female character even though she uses her powers for evil, laughs!

About what Allison slipped into her dad’s pocket, maybe it’s a piece of jewelry, her mom’s to be specific, like her wedding band, because that’s got to be a pretty clear message to Chris what he’s to do! Okay, so maybe it’s not that but still, it’s a pretty good guess, I think!

And it can always get worse; I bet Chris hadn’t thought about his father coming out from of the shadows where he obviously likes to hide! Because that’s bad, very bad indeed, especially now that Allison is there too and if the mere man makes Chris feel like a kid again, then it’s definitely not going to be good!

Cannot possibly even begin to think what’s going to happen when “daddy dearest” finally arrives?! And what is the elusive trio up to, I also wonder obviously!? Therefore, I really hope we will hear from you soon, (hopefully, that is). If not with a new chapter, but at least to let us know if you’re writing or not, because this story will always be on top of my alert list!

Longing for more, laughs!

Here comes the fourteenth part of the review of chapter twenty-two.

“Allison shook her head. She pulled her hand away, shoving it agitatedly into her pocket. Her fist clenched as if gripping onto whatever she found inside. She was clearly shaken, but there was a determined gleam in her tear-wet eyes. "No, it's not," she whispered hoarsely. "Not for me. I understand the danger, Dad, I do, but there are some things that are just more important. There have to be."

Chris could see in her eyes that she was afraid. She could not say it aloud because of potential listeners, but Allison was afraid she had misplaced her trust in him, that he would betray Scott and Stiles to protect her. He wished he could assure her otherwise, but the truth was that while it was the very last thing in the world he wanted or intended to do ... he knew he would, for her, if he had no choice.

"I don't hate you, Dad, I love you," she said quietly, startling him more than if she'd shouted and slapped him. "I love you, and I believe in you." Her gaze held his with heart-breaking, tearful intensity. There was trust there, he realized. So much undeserved trust. It felt like that little baby wrapping her fist around his finger all over again, claiming him and making him want to be whatever it was she somehow saw in him.

"You hate everything that happened, I can see that. You have a chance to make new choices now, to be that person you want to be, like you said. It's who you are, Dad, who you really are. We can make this right. Somehow, we have to, don't you see? It doesn't matter what family you came from. I believe in our family, the two of us. You always taught me to do what was right, to not put my own good before that of others. I don't believe that the father I know would tolerate letting innocent people get hurt."

They were still talking in careful generics, but they both knew what was being said.

Chris felt pained down to his core, because she was right, but the world was just so wrong that he wasn't sure it mattered, even though he wanted it to matter so badly it hurt. "And what if they find Scott?" he asked quietly. "What price would you find yourself willing to pay for his life? What wouldn't you do to keep him from a slow, horrible death? What about Lydia and your other innocent friends who don't even know about any of this? You have to understand how these people work, Allison. If you defy them they will start killing the people you love one by one. Are you ready for that?"

Tears spilled down Allison's cheeks. She shook her head. "No," she rasped hoarsely. "No, I'm not." She leaned forward into him, hugging him with her free arm and burrowing into him as if seeking comfort.”

Allison’s right, because someone has to think positively and more importantly she’s to, for her own sake, because reality is too horrible and bleak, even though it’s a very dangerous world that they live in, but Chris will always know a hell of a lot more about it, than she ever will, because he grew up in it after all, so…I guess, they are both right!

And of course, Chis would never betray his daughters trust, if there isn’t no other way, that is, (let’s hope it will never come to that, because that’s just a little too awful to think about, to be honest!) because that’s the type of thing people would do for the people they love, when you haven’t got anything left to loose I think, to keep them safe and sound, because that’s only natural, right to do anything in your power to not let your loved ones get hurt!

More so, while I think that she’s right about her dad now getting a chance to be the man he always wanted to be, it’s not that easy, because the people they’re up against, which also happens to be family, are highly dangerous and has a lot of high up people in their pockets, right?! So, it’s not going to be easy, that’s for sure!

And Chris’ right, wondering what she will do if Kate and Gerard get a hand on Allison’s innocent friends, not to mention Scott and her dad!

“Chris wrapped his arms tightly around her, and felt her breath brush his neck below his ear, her words only barely audible.

"I'm not going to lose anyone, because I'm not going to roll over and let them be taken," she hissed softly against his skin, her faint, hoarse whisper fiery with the flame of her determination. "Staying silent and playing their game didn't save Mom, did it? We let them keep taking and they will take it all. I'd rather fight and risk losing everything, than sit around in fear while it's taken away piece by piece." As she spoke, Chris felt Allison slide something into his jacket pocket.

Chris simply clutched her tighter to him, feeling so proud and so very afraid. Motion in his periphery vision made him look up to find Kate standing in the newly opened doorway.

"You about done, here? It's getting late and I'm getting tired," Kate said coolly. Chris wondered if that was really why she was here, or if she perhaps been concerned that Allison might in some way be getting to him with her rebellious talk.

He gave Allison another firm squeeze before reluctantly letting her go. He kissed her on the forehead as he rose. "I have to go speak with your Aunt, princess. I'll be back," he promised.

Allison nodded mutely.”

Okay, so I’ve probably said this before, but there’s a reason why she’s one of my favorite female characters ever, simply because Allison’s a force to be reckon with, that’s for sure, she’s so fierce and kick ass, what’s not to love, laughs!

I actually got shivers down my spine in a good way when I read her awesome little speech, both the first time and the second time, because it was so intense and she’s totally right in every aspect about what she said to her dad!

And what was it; she slipped into her dad’s pocket?!

“Chris saw one of the guards outside step back into the room with her as he and Kate made their way back down the hall and his frown tightened. He didn't like being reminded of how vulnerable she was. How vulnerable she was always going to be, so long as his father and sister were calling the shots. Allison was right that he hadn't been able to protect Victoria. Would he really be able to do any better with her?

"How'd it go?" Kate asked casually as they made their way back down the stairs, as if she hadn't been listening to the whole thing.

"How do you think?" Chris said curtly. "This is a lot to take in all at once."

"Well that wouldn't be a problem if you hadn't kept her in the dark all these years. Ignoring the cold hard truth has never made it go away, no matter how much you would like to try."

"Kate, she's just a child..."

"We were all children once, Chris, and anyway, I hardly think you can call her that anymore. No, she's old enough to have to make choices now. I know you want to think I'm the bad guy here, but believe it or not I am on your side. I have been running interference for you since princess up there popped up in the very wrong place at the very wrong time. You know how paranoid the old man is. He sees conspiracy theories everywhere and you have to admit that your daughter suddenly chumming around with Derek Hale, the boy you failed to kill, looks bad." She grinned mirthlessly. "Me? I don't think you're that interesting. I think this is exactly the stupidly dumb chance that it looks like on the label, but that isn't my call and you know it. You have enough problems on your hands without her getting a lot of dangerously stupid ideas. Do you think you going to be able to talk sense into her, or not?"

Chris' jaw tightened fractionally. If he'd had any doubt about whether or not Kate had been listening in on them, it was gone now. Clearly, she had and was not trying very hard to hide it.

"Like I said, it's a lot to take in all at once, but Allison will be sensible once she understands things fully and has had a little time to adjust. I'll bring her around," he assured tersely, well aware of how bad things looked and how tenuous the situation was.”

As, if she doesn’t already know, because she was eavesdropping, like the creepy bitch she is! So, if I got it right, it’s actually Gerard who’s the one they really should be looking out for, because he’s paranoid, as well as, a cruel son of a bitch, apparently.

And the rest comes in the next review.

Here comes the thirteenth part of the review of chapter twenty-two.

“"In part, because we knew the Hale kids. Not terribly well, but Kate and I knew them both socially before everything went bad. The idea was that they would be more likely to listen to us. Even more importantly though, it fell to us because it was a very delicate situation, and an important one. Kate and I didn't usually do ground work on jobs of that nature, or at least, I didn't," he corrected himself. "Kate was always very involved in all aspects of the organization, but that was her choice. With the Hales though, the situation was so potentially volatile that it needed to be handled by people who could be trusted implicitly. Hired guns can be bought off by opposition factions, and Gerard had plenty of enemies who would have loved to find a way to use the Hales against him. That was the whole concern, really. Gerard was much more worried about keeping them out of his enemies' hands than he was about keeping them away from law enforcement."

"Kate made first contact. She lured them out by befriending Derek and pretending she wanted to help them. To be honest, I'm still not entirely sure whether the plan was always to kill them and I was intentionally left out of the loop, or if Kate took matters into her own hands and simply improvised her own more permanent solution to the problem when the opportunity arose. Either way, after that night ... I couldn't do it anymore. I knew them. They weren't faceless, meaningless people. They were kids, only a little older than you." Chris shook his head again. To this day, he still sometimes had nightmares of Laura Hale lying dead on the ground, only when he blinked, it wasn't Laura anymore, it was Allison.”

Wow, I must have missed the part about why Gerard really wanted Derek and Laura dead, because I kind of don’t remembered that I’d read that before just now, damn, but it make sense that he wouldn’t want them to fall into his enemies hands, so they could be used against him, he really is a despicable human being, isn’t he?!

And of course, Chris would have nightmares about the death of Laura Hale, who turns into his daughter, because if he hadn’t he wouldn’t be human, especially considering that he was there when she died.

“"You were a teenager by then, and I was getting more and more pressure to bring you into the fold. That was one thing I swore to myself I was never going to do, and after the Hales, I knew we couldn't go on as we were. I wasn't doing anybody any good. I was only fooling myself. I told Gerard that I was done, I wanted out. His secrets were safe, I promised him that. I couldn't be a part of it anymore, but Victoria and I would never say a thing. All we wanted was to be left alone and allowed to pretend he and Kate and the whole wretched business never existed. He didn't want to let us go, but couldn't stop me without causing ... problems for himself." Chris paused, hesitating only briefly before pushing on. It was time for it all to come out. He swallowed against the painful lump rising in his throat. Strange, how it could still effect him even after all this time.

"He couldn't stop me, but he made sure I understood exactly what would happen if I ever did try to betray him. He had Victoria killed to send me that message, and made it clear that if I ever stepped out of line, you'd be next."

Allison's eyes went wide and she recoiled involuntarily, as if she'd been slapped in the face. Horror washed over her face. "Oh my God, Mom..." she whispered, tears rising in her shocked eyes and slipping down her cheeks. She gripped her own thigh tightly, as if looking for an anchor. "If it wasn't a car accident, then how? How did they...?" her voice was hoarse and lost, like she wasn't sure whether she honestly wanted to know, and yet needed to at the same time.

Chris hesitated. He'd intended to lie to her. Intended to tell her that her mother's brakes had simply been cut or something like that, but the words died on his lips as he met her swimming gaze. Right or wrong, he couldn't bring himself to lie about this. Maybe it was better for her to know the kind of people they were dealing with.

"It was bad, honey," his voice caught unexpectedly and he coughed against the aching tension. "She was ... hurt, a lot. They took pictures, so I'd know exactly what they'd done. The supposed car accident hid the damage. I..." his voice cracked again and he swallowed, almost angry with himself that he was having so much trouble getting through this. "I didn't know until it was too late. I didn't see it coming in time. I should have, and I didn't. I didn't do enough, I didn't protect her and I'm sorry. I'm so sorry, honey. I swore I would do better by you, that I'd keep you safe. I couldn't lose you too." He turned away, quickly wiping his face and blinking his eyes, which stung with tears he'd never meant for Allison to see.”

Glad to see that Chris finally woke up from his slumber, but I really think that he should have known that you can’t just quit the family business like that, without serious repercussions, that is! Because if you’re part of let’s say, a secret criminal organization or just an underground government fraction, and you want out, most likely that’s going happen if you’re dead or they are going to kill people close to you, in order for you to be quiet, which is what his dad did to him, I guess, so never mind! But he couldn’t have known how utterly ruthless his dad could be, now could he?! Because that man is a monster!

And of course, he should still be affected by his wife’s death; she was killed in a brutal way, by his family, ordered by his own father.

Poor Allison, I can’t even begin to understand what she must feel like, right about now.

“"The rest you already know," he finished, still looking away. "We moved across the country and settled into a new life with as few ties as possible to the old one. Gerard and Kate kept making overtures to us, to you, mostly, but as long as I kept quiet and never interfered with their affairs, they seemed content to let us be. I met new people, good people, and became someone I actually wanted to be for the first time in my life. I was foolish enough to think that I could actually escape and give you a better life, that the sins of his past would not catch up with us and ruin everything. I guess I should have known better." He stared at his hands, lips twisting grimly into something that could never really be called a smile.

"There has to be something we can do?" Allison asked quietly, more question than statement. He could hear the tears in her voice, but couldn't look at her, not knowing what he had to say.

"The only thing we can do right now is try to work out a new arrangement. You were swept up in this with no knowledge of what it all meant, I have to make Kate and my father see that. They have to be made to understand that you aren't a threat. They may need certain assurances. Proofs of loyalty. I'll work that out."

"What?" Allison retorted incredulously, her voice sharpening to anger. "What kind of proofs?" Her tone suggested she could guess that they involved betraying her friends in ways she could not begin to contemplate. "No way! Dad, this is -"

"Allison," Chris snapped, his gaze shooting back to her with alarm. Gentling his voice, he reached out and took her hand earnestly between his. "Sweetheart, you don't understand. I'm going to need you to trust me. You can hate me, but I need you to trust me. I know you think this is all one big hideous wrong, and it is, but it is not your responsibility to try and set it right -"

"Then whose? Whose is it?" Allison argued.

"Not yours," Chris repeated firmly. "Getting yourself killed won't make anything any better for anyone else. I'm sorry. I hate this and I understand if you hate me, but I will do whatever it takes to protect you. I've been dancing with the devil for years to ensure that, and even if you don't understand it now, this is merely a new chorus."”

Yep, Chris learned that the hard way, didn’t he! Proofs of loyalty sounds pretty scary, because it almost sounds like he’ll have to betray his daughters friends in order to make sure that nothing will happen to her, not that I actually think, he’s going to do that, but still…He’s just going to pretend to do that right, because Kate’s listening, it’s all for show, yes?!

Allison should listen to her dad because he’s right; it’s not her job to fix things, even though I’m pretty sure that she’d want to do that very badly, I’m mean, who wouldn’t want to help the people you love/in your life, to make their problems go away and so on.

And yes, Chris has danced with the devil for years, hasn’t he, he really must be tired of doing it, because it sounds like pretty damn hard work!

And the rest comes in the next review.

Here comes the twelfth part of the review of chapter twenty-two.

“"Your mother was a wonderful woman. She was strong, courageous and loving. I need you to know that about her. She loved you more than anything. She was a good person in a world that was anything but. It was our world, though, hers and mine. It was what we knew and we'd learned too well how to look the other way and accept all the little necessary evils, but then, there was suddenly this amazing, innocent little person in our lives. It didn't happen all at once, but I think we both felt the shift. What we could accept for ourselves, we couldn't imagine teaching you to tolerate. We knew we didn't want you in our world, and that forced me to reconsider my own position within it. I tried to protect you from my family and its secrets, Victoria and I both did. We never let you be alone with Kate or my father, and as long as you were a child, they both seemed content enough to let you remain in the dark until you would be old enough to understand and appreciate things.

"For a while, I thought I could use my position to do some good, and maybe that would be enough to somehow balance the scales. I tried to be the voice of moderation, tried to find alternate ways of dealing with things, less bloody ways ... but the Hales ... the Hales were the final straw. That was an unmitigated mess that should never have happened." He shook his head, running one hand through his hair as he felt again the familiar stir of pain, horror and frustration that had weighed on him for all these years.

"I'm sorry to say I knew there was a hit order out on the parents. I liked them, but that didn't matter. They were a threat and that was simply the way things worked. I was appalled when I learned their youngest child had been killed with them, but was told it was accidental collateral damage," his gaze slid to fix on the wall behind Allison, unable to look at her as he continued. "I'm sure now that was a lie, and maybe I suspected as much at the time, but I was good at believing what I wanted to believe, and anyway, what was done was done. Only, that wasn't the end of it. The two remaining Hale siblings were in the wind and Kate and I were tasked with tracking them down."

Chris sighed heavily. "Ostensibly, our goal was to find them and convince them that it was in their best interests to leave the witness protection program and flee the country instead. Essentially, we were supposed to buy them off without them realizing that's what we were doing, and thereby ensure that any second hand knowledge they might possess never became a problem. This story, I did believe. I truly thought that that was what we were doing. I knew them. They were good kids who got dealt a rotten hand, and I thought if we could set them up nicely in some out of the way corner of the world with better lives than the crappy WitSec program could offer, then at least that was something. But of course, as you already know, that's now how things went down.””

Sounds like Chris was a little na?ve, when he thought they (he and Kate) were only going to talk to Derek and Laura, given what he’d done for his family before, that is. I mean, he must been at least a little suspicious, smelled a rat or something like that!?

Okay, so maybe, it’s just easy for me to think like that, because I, obviously knew what was going to happen that night and Chris didn’t at the time, of course, so…

Speaking of Derek Hale, he must really be an extremely strong person and I don’t mean just physically but also mentally and emotionally (well, I guess, that depends on how you see it, sometimes!), given what he’s been through on the show and in this story, of course. Because I don’t think many people would have wanted to or could have carried on after losing so many people like he’s done, family members and all that!

And much like on the show, someone still wants him dead in this story, whether or not it’s actual hunters or bounty hunters, poor Derek, he really has had a rough couple of teenage years, because it was then where it all started, for him at least!

Which brings me to the question of what would have happened, if Stiles and Scott hadn’t stumbled across the Hale property, where Derek was currently at?! What would Derek have done then, obviously I’d like to believe that he still would have tried to locate and stopped the alpha, but would he have gone back to New York or gone somewhere else afterwards?!

The reason why this popped into my head was because, I think he stayed with them because one, he wanted to find his sister’s killer and stop them, two; maybe he felt like he’d an obligation to help Scott how to be a werewolf, because of the fact that his uncle bit the newly turned werewolf/what happened with his family, because of guilt, but also because his mother raised him to help people in need!

And this is why I think that Derek is one of the strongest characters on the show (mostly because of his past, obviously, but also what happens later), because in this story I kind of think they all are strong in different ways, of course, just like on the show, naturally!

“Chris did close his eyes finally, the memories of that night washing over him anew. His hands were not clean. He had killed and been involved in killing before, but up until that night it had always been some other thug with just as much blood on their hands. Some asshole who would have been just as happy to plug him first, and in most cases, had tried to do exactly that before he put them down. It didn't excuse it, perhaps, but he hadn't lost sleep over them. Not like Laura Hale.

He had never knowingly, actively been involved in the death of an innocent until that night. Mostly, he suspected now, because his father had carefully engineered things that way. He had known his son's temperament and been shrewd enough not to involve him in matters outside his comfort zone. He didn't need to, after all, he had Kate, who had always clearly been the heir apparent. It had taken Chris far too long to understand how carefully Gerard had sculpted his view of their family and operations, too long realize just what a master manipulator his father really was. He still wasn't sure whether the situation with the Hales had been his father trying to nudge him out into deeper waters, or if it had in fact been all Kate's doing.

"Why you and Aunt Kate?" Allison interrupted his internal whirl of memory and supposition. "If Grandfather was in charge, why not just have some other random goons take care of everything? Why you?"

Chris' gaze refocused on her. It was a good question. Allison's eyes were haunted, but she was being remarkably collected and calm about everything. She looked exhausted, so she might simply be too tired to get very worked up, but his daughter was strong, he knew that. He hoped she was strong enough for what lay ahead.”

Well, that sounds like something Chris would do, that he only killed bad guys (not that he killed Laura himself, but he was involved in it somehow) up to that night when Laura was killed, sounds like he was a little bit like a vigilante, much like Dexter and Edward (before when Edward rebelled against Carlisle’s vegetarian diet, which resulted in him killing the bad guys, (whom he also feed from), which he found out about when he used his telepathic abilities, to sort out the bad people from the good, I mean.

And Dexter is the serial killer, who’s following a code and is only killing bad guys, but much like Edward, he’s still a killer, so… And the vampire stopped killing humans, all together because he didn’t want to be a monster, which ironically is exactly what Derek and his family didn’t want to be either, a monster that is, because you can either be a monster, who’s embracing their true nature/dark side, or you can be a monster with a soul or at least keep your humanity!).

But perhaps not exactly in the same way, because Chris’; a) not a serial killer and b) not a vampire thirsting for human blood, so I guess, there’s where the similarity ends, laughs! Okay, to be honest, I don’t really know what I wanted to say with the whole vigilante stuff, so feel free to ignore it!

Gerard Argent is a sly son of bitch, but that sound like something he would have done, for sure!

Yes, Allison’s strong all right, but I guess, finding out about what really happened to her mother, that’s going to have to be a pretty damn hard pill to swallow! Poor girl, especially after learning about the family business, that her granddad and aunt played a pretty big part in her mother’s death. Because that’s just brutal!

And the rest comes in the next review.

Here comes the eleventh part of the review of chapter twenty-two.

“Allison's breath hitched, but she obediently said nothing in response. After a few moments her body relaxed a little into Chris' embrace and she allowed herself to hug him back, holding on one-handed. "Dad," she murmured hoarsely. Her breathing was rapid and forced and he felt her body shudder slightly against him, her only concessions to how overwhelmed and overwrought she must surely be feeling right now.

"Allison, I'm so sorry," he said, still soft but loud enough to be overheard this time. He was positive Kate had the room bugged and monitored. "Everything will be okay. I'll work this out. I won't let anything happen to you, I promise." He stroked her back gently and then let her go.

Allison's body language was a little more relaxed now, but she was still clearly upset, which was no surprise. She regarded him with some frustration, obviously brimming with questions but unsure if they were safe to ask.

"Allison, what happened? Why aren't you, Scott and Stiles at school? How did you get mixed up with Derek Hale?" he asked, breaking the silence.

Allison hesitated uncertainly, but he reached over and gave her free hand a little squeeze. "It's all right. I'm not upset. I just need to know the situation." He looked at her, willing her to understand that he meant it was all right for her to tell the story even with eavesdroppers. Kate probably knew most of it already, and he needed to get a grip on what had been happening before facing her again. He trusted that Allison would edit out anything obviously unsafe for outside ears, now that she knew the situation.

Allison apparently got his silent message, because she told him the story, such as it was. She told him about a boy named Matt Daehler whom Chris quickly decided he would have liked to spend some quality time with in a dark alley. She told him what Matt had done to Stiles and how he'd had to leave school. How Scott had had a vague but troubling phone call from Stiles and how they'd gotten worried and come looking for him when all subsequent attempts to reach him had failed.

According to Allison, they'd just met up with Stiles and his new friend Derek, and had only barely had time to hear what she had thought was a particularly wild story about Derek's history, when Kate and her people had shown up and they'd had to run away. She said Stiles had been badly hurt by Kate, and he and Derek were both so frightened, so convinced they were all going to die, and that's why she'd helped them try to escape. She claimed she had no idea how Stiles and Derek had met, or any details about anything that had happened with them since they had. That might be true, but Chris had a feeling she probably knew a little more than she wanted to let on, which was just as well under the current circumstances.”

I’d have really liked to see Chris spending some quality time with Matt in a dark alley, that’s for sure laughs! And I’m against all kinds of violence (the only exception being self-defense, defending yourself in a dangerous situation, someone you care about or even random people from getting hurt.), especially sexual assault, of course (no one should ever find themselves in a situation where someone takes them against their will or make them to stuff they don’t want to do!

I might be willing to bend the rules a little for the perpetrator themselves, because they kind of deserve to get a taste of their own medicine, but also in a way not, because it’s still a horrible thing to put someone through and all that it’s going to result in, is to destroy more lives, because you either become a victim or a perpetrator yourself, of some kind!). I guess, I’m still a little ambiguous on this matter, oh well!

Chris would definitely have gotten a free pass to do whatever he wanted to creepy Matt Daehler and the likes of him, because of what he wanted to do to Allison and what he did to Stiles.

“"Is it true?" Allison finally asked, looking at him with eyes that already knew the answer but were still illogically hoping for a denial. "Is it really true, dad? What happened to Hales?" She shook her head, her eyes glistening with un-spilled moisture. "Did you know? Did... did Mom know?"

Chris resisted the urge to briefly press his eyes shut. He didn't deserve to run or to hide from this question. His hands were far too stained. "Yes," he said quietly in answer to all of the above. "It's true, all of it, and it's just the tip of a very, very dark iceberg. I never wanted you to be a part of this world. I wanted no part of it myself, but you can't just stop being an Argent. It doesn't work that way," he said with no small amount of bitterness. He didn't care if Kate was listening in, because what he had to say was nothing she didn't already know. She was perfectly aware how he felt.

"I've done horrible things," he said honestly, because Allison deserved the truth, and at this point, it was all he had to give her. "Unforgiveable things that I can't take back or undo." Chris refrained from trying to offer her any kind of justification. There was none, he knew that. True, this birthright had been forced on him and for much of his early life he hadn't felt he'd had a choice, but that did not excuse the things he'd done, and the things he hadn't done.

"I always knew, deep down, that it was wrong," he continued quietly. "But I never really started questioning my life and the way I had been raised until I became a father myself. You started changing me, Allison," he told her, unable to stop himself from reaching out and brushing a strand of hair back from her bruised face. At least she didn't flinch away this time, although that would probably change again soon enough.”

It’s no going back now, I’m afraid, for Allison, because once you know, you can’t unlearn it, no matter how much you wished you could and it’s going to get worse, before it gets better!

I bet most parents wouldn’t want their children to be a part of that kind of world/life, with the exception of Gerard Argent, because he wanted both of his children to follow in his footsteps. Which pretty much happened with Kate, because she’s already doing whatever he wants and a little more!

It’s impossible not to feel sorry for both Chris and Allison in this chapter, mostly due to what happened to Victoria Argent, he lost his wife and she lost her mother, which is both equally terrible, of course!

And the rest comes in the next review.

Here comes the tenth part of the review of chapter twenty-two.

“"She's fine, by the way, so you can quit looking so constipated," Kate remarked as she led him up the stairs to the second floor.

Kate opened a door and ushered him inside, letting them both into one of the large, lavishly appointed second floor bedrooms. A man stood guard just inside the doorway, but Chris' gaze was immediately drawn to the opposite side of the room. Allison was sitting on the queen-sized bed with her back against the headboard. Her left wrist was handcuffed to the heavy wrought iron bed frame.

One side of her face was bruised and her eye was swollen nearly shut. She had a split lip that had been neatly mended and a further assortment of hand-shaped bruises on the exposed flesh of the arm that was cuffed to the bed.

"Allison!" Chris was at her side in a few quick strides. Crouching by the bed, he cupped his baby's battered face gently in his palm. Allison allowed it, but did not lean into his touch as she might have done on previous occasions. Last week she would have pressed into him, unhesitatingly looking to him for safety and comfort after being hurt and frightened like this. Now, she sat still and wary, as if he were a stranger. There was a flare of relief in her eyes at seeing him, but there were a lot of other emotions there too. Her whole body was tense and her eyes were red-rimmed with both tears and exhaustion.

Soul deep pain and a hot, seething rage bubbled in Chris' chest, but he contained it, keeping his touch gentle as it left his little girl's face and shifted instead to her bound wrist.

"Was this really necessary?" he asked, turning to look at Kate with eyes that displayed every iota of how angry he was over his daughter's condition.

"Absolutely," Kate said flatly. "This one's quite the handful. We caught her trying to climb out the window earlier. You know what a nasty drop that would be. It's for her own protection," she said, choosing to answer solely about the restraints and blatantly ignoring the real source of her brother's anger.

"And I suppose beating her was also for her protection?" Chris straightened up, fixing Kate with a lethally icy gaze.

"Nobody beat her," Kate said in an annoyed, long-suffering tone as if her brother were whining over a hangnail. "She fought and had to be subdued. You've got a little wild cat under that pretty-girl exterior, Chris. A lot of spirit and ingenuity there. It's too bad you kept her isolated so long and let her end up on the wrong side of things. She could be a real asset to the family, if you haven't already ruined her with your namby-pamby ways."”

Kate sure has a very odd definition of Allison being fine, but I suppose in her eyes, someone who is not passed out from the pain from a beating or simply not being dead is probably fine by her standards, right?! Because Allison is far from fine in my opinion and I bet that Allison, herself would agree and also her dad!

Poor Allison, that sounds pretty nasty, the way she’s been hurt, that is, (but it still it’s not as bad as what Kate did to Stiles, of course, but if Allison hadn’t been family to Kate, she probably would done the same to her niece that she did to Stiles, right?!), and Chris too, seeing his daughter hurting like that, must really make him feel like he failed his daughter, right?!

“Chris scowled at her. Kate taking an interest in Allison was the very last thing he wanted. She'd get her claws into his daughter over his dead body. Mindful that that was an entirely real possibility, he did not say or do any of the things flowing through his head. "I need to talk to her, Kate," he said instead. "She has been isolated from all this. I need to explain, so she'll understand and there won't be any more trouble. Give us a few minutes alone." His gaze darted meaningfully from Kate to the man by the door. It wasn't a request.

Kate shrugged, seeming to have anticipated this demand. "I'm not going to unlock her, so don't bother asking, but fine, go ahead with the daddy daughter time. I'll be downstairs in the drawing room when you're done with your touching little reunion and ready to talk business." Kate turned and headed for the door, gesturing the guard out with her. She paused in the doorway, looking back and fixing Chris with a cool, steady gaze.

"Oh, but Chris...? Don't take too long and don't get any ideas. There'll be two guards outside the room, and this whole estate if fully covered, trust me. The cliffs around here are still dangerous and I'd hate for there to be any more tragic accidents, you know?" With that, she left, shutting the door behind her.

The doors didn't lock from the outside, but it didn't matter, Chris knew there was no easy way out of this room by force and fighting would only put Allison in needless danger. Negotiation and nepotism was his best hope of saving his daughter and ensuring her future at this stage. Even if it cost him her love and whatever was left of his soul.”

Damn, that sounds very ominous; like he’s planning to sell Stiles, Derek and Scott out to Kate, in order to save himself, or the very least his daughter.

“Allison was looking at him with her mother's serious, intense eyes when he turned back to her. She had turned to sit on the edge of the bed so she could face him, sliding her cuffed wrist along the bar until it met the bed post and would go no further.

Chris swallowed against the tenseness in his throat as he sat down on the bed next to her. Allison was an intelligent, independent young woman. He knew that and was very proud of her... but he was a parent, and it was impossible to look at her and not see the baby who had latched onto his finger with a death grip as soon as she was placed in his arms, holding him like he belonged to her forever, and utterly changing his life simply by existing.

"Allison..." he wasn't sure where to start.

"Is Scott okay?" she interrupted him, her fist curling against her thigh with tense anxiety. "And Stiles and Derek? Are they okay?" her voice was hushed but intense.

"I don't know, baby," Chris returned, reaching out to stroke her face only to have her pull back from him. "I haven't talked to Kate yet, so right now you know more about it than I do." It was a necessary lie.

Fear flittered across Allison's features, draining what little color she had that wasn't bruising. He knew then that she was the one who had told the boys to call him, and was now busily assuming the worst about why they hadn't.

"I'm sorry, honey, I know this has all been a huge shock." Chris leaned in and hugged her, not allowing her to retreat this time.

Allison didn't struggle, but she was stiff and unresponsive in his embrace; tense with anger and worry and the gulf of confused mistrust that had suddenly opened up between them.

With his face safely buried in Allison's hair and his mouth obscured, Chris whispered into her ear very, very softly. "We're being watched. They're listening, so don't say anything. I talked to Scott and the others and they're all right."”

That’s very smart of Chris, playing it safe by lying, but then again he knows how his sister operates, so that shouldn’t really come as a surprise, I guess!

And the rest comes in the next review.

Here comes the ninth part of the review of chapter twenty-two.

“Kate took a long sip from her drink instead of responding, the ice clinking in her glass. Turning, she disappeared into the drawing room.

Chris followed, battling down the tightness knotting in his gut. It was late, he was tired and not in the mood for his sister's games. One of the French doors leading out a large balcony was open, and Chris found Kate outside, standing in the moonlight by the railing overlooking the water far below.

The villa was situated at the top of a hill directly overhanging the ocean and the air was full of the soft, constant roar of the surf braking against the craggy cliffs all around them. The surrounding cliffs with their twisting pathways and trees and desolate, secretive beauty were nothing but dark shadows blotting out the stars in the darkness, but Chris could see them clearly in his mind's eye. The sound of the surf and the familiar scent of pine and salt sea brought with it a rush of half-forgotten recollections and sensations.

Kate turned and leaned her hips back against the railing, swirling the ice in her glass and fixing Chris with a look as if she knew what was going through his head.

"Brings back a lot of memories, doesn't it?" she murmured, her faint smirk making everything she said sound vaguely mocking. "All those summers boating, surfing... running off into the woods to get laid." She fixed him with a teasing grin.

"Where is Allison?" Chris repeated.

Kate sighed. "You used to be a lot more fun, Chris. What happened to us?"

"I opened my eyes and took a good hard look in the mirror," Chris said flatly. "Allison, Kate. Now." His tone had lost all pretense of patience.”

I really liked how you described the house and its location, the crashing waves below, the sea air and pine trees, because all that sounds rather lovely, I must say! It really must have been quite the contrast to the people who lived in that house, (apart from Chris and perhaps their mother as well, unless she also was involved in the criminal side business, that is, obviously!), considering that their dad, apparently was a criminal as well, as a senator and Kate pretty much followed in his criminal footsteps!

I also loved the comment Chris made when Kate wondered what happened to them, why he’s so boring, as of late (according to her, that is), because that was a very good, biting comeback/reply, laughs!

To answer that question, perhaps because her brother was never really like her, a sadistic psychopath and also because he grew up when he got married and became a dad, but most likely because he never wanted to be like her and wanted to be a part of that family and the life style, in the first place!

“Kate rolled her eyes and tossed back the remainder of her drink, leaving the empty glass sitting carelessly atop the wide balcony railing. "You always did fixate on things and worry too much," she commented. "Remember that kid we used to play with when we came out here? What was his name...? Estoban? The gardener's kid, the one who was allergic to everything? You made such a fuss about him."

"Estefan," Chris corrected coldly. "His name was Estefan and yes, I remember him. I remember you goading him into stupid dares that landed him in the hospital full of bee stings. I remember that he was crazy about you, that you kissed him with a mouth full of peanut butter and that that time, the EMTs arrived too late. I remember that Estefan's father wouldn't shut up and accept Dad's sympathy gifts and that he ended up dead at the bottom of that cliff," he jerked his head towards the dark, distant shapes on their left. "That's what I remember, Kate." His voice was flat and dark.

"Poor man, so drunk he slipped right off the edge. Or maybe, he just couldn't take the loss," Kate said sarcastically, not even having the decency to look contrite. "Accidents do happen. All the time." There was something in her tone that suggested she had had a reason for bringing up that particular memory, and that this was not idle conversation.

Chris' jaw tightened. "I'm not playing this game with you, Kate." He moved one simple, but meaningful step into his sister's personal space. "I want to see my daughter, right now, or it will be your body they're scraping off the rocks down there," he murmured.”

I’m sure she remembers, it was her first kill (possibly, right, or at least, the very first time she had played a part in someone’s death, maybe she hadn’t known what was going to happen or hadn’t intended for him to die?! Having in mind what happened with the boy she kissed, fully knowing that he was allergic to a lot of things (which would probably include being fatally allergic to peanuts as well), because that was beyond cruel and sadistic of her. I mean, she must have known what was going to happen (obviously) that he was going to die, if he didn’t get medical treatment from someone with medical training like imminently after he got the anaphylactic shock, which still probably might not have worked, depending on how allergic he was and so on. Because damn, she’s like way scarier in this story than on the show, I swear, also because of the fact that she’s was in her teens when it happened and she probably did it because she was bored and wanted to see what was going to happen, which means that she’s pretty much already a psychopath in the making back then, huh!

Damn and I’m sure he really means it too, of course, but the question is can he really do it, kill his sister, when and if it comes to that?!

“Kate smiled, seeming pleased rather than at all frightened. "There you are, brother. That's the Chris I know. I was wondering where you've been hiding." She lounged against the railing, openly daring him to try to follow up on his threat.

Chris was not stupid enough to take her up on the invitation. He knew better than to move against Kate in a situation that she controlled. He knew better than to underestimate her and whatever tricks she undoubtedly had up her sleeve. Instead, he did the one thing that he knew would irritate her the most: nothing. He folded his arms and simply stood there in silence, watching her impassively and waiting her out.

Kate became bored with unsurprising swiftness. She sighed and pushed off from the railing. "We need to talk seriously, Chris. This is quite the mess we've got on our hands, here."

"You should know," Chris thought, but did not say, unwilling to engage her further until his more immediate concerns were dealt with. "Fine," he agreed instead. "We'll talk. After I see Allison."

Kate made a face. "You really do have a one-track mind, don't you? Okay, fine, suit yourself. Come on." Gesturing for him to follow, she passed back into the drawing room and then out into the hall.“

Of course, she wouldn’t have been frightened, by her brother’s threat, because she’s not that kind of person who would go around being scared, I think! Haha, I really liked Chris tactics in handling his sister’s silly little games, that was very smart of him!

Yep, it’s her mess more than his in a way and in a way it’s not, because if only he had done what he was supposed to do, a few years back, killing Derek when he had the chance, which I’m super glad that he didn’t obviously, because then none of this would have happened and this awesome story wouldn’t have been written, laughs, which would have been super sad, of course!

And of course, Chris has a one-track mind, he’s a father after all, wonder how Kate would be like if she had any children, shudders, I’m pretty sure I don’t want to find out, like ever! And now I feel super sad for her imaginable children, because she would probably have messed them up and then some, she’s simply not mother-material, I think!

And the rest comes in the next review.

Here comes the eight part of the review of chapter twenty-two.

“Stiles, Derek and Scott just stood there looking at one another for a long moment, trying to digest everything that had just been said and its possible implications.

A gust of wind blew in through one of the partially open windows across the room, making the plastic coverings around them sway and rustle softly and breaking the moment.

Stiles took the phone from Scott, turned it off and disconnected the battery again. The dark room became even darker. "We should hurry, don't want to miss our ride." He glanced towards the windows, where the pale glow from the street lights outside now provided the only illumination.

"You want to do what he suggested, don't you? You want to keep the checkpoints," Derek said quietly, very quietly in the darkness. "You want to trust him."

Stiles looked at him steadily amid the shifting, half shadows. "I want us to survive this, Derek. You, me, Scott. I want our parents to survive it too," he murmured, his voice catching. "I don't know about trust, and I'm not thrilled at the idea of fleeing the country as a solution either ... but yeah, I want to keep the checkpoints and see what he comes back with, Derek. I want to see where this thread goes, because I think Mr. Argent was being as level as he could be with us, and mostly because we don't have a lot of other options. But ... I don't want to do it without you," he murmured, reaching out, groping for Derek in the shadows. "I know how much trusting an Argent cost you before, I know that." He had to stop and swallow, his eyes glistening in the faint, silvery light. "I won't ask you to risk doing that again, if you can't. If you want to walk away, we'll... I'll... we'll figure something else out, somehow."

Scott shifted in the dimness beside Stiles. He seemed to want to say something, but judged it better to remain silent for the moment.

Derek knew Stiles meant what he said. He also knew that aside from whatever thin potential hope Chris was offering, there was almost no way they had even the slightest chance of protecting Stiles and Scott's families now that the boys had been identified. Derek had seen already seen Stiles' utter panic at the thought of losing his father. He'd known then that this time might come, and had already made his mind up about what he would do if and when it did. He wasn't going to force Stiles to make that choice, no matter the cost.

Reaching out, Derek caught Stiles' searching hand in the darkness and squeezed. "Let's keep the checkpoints," he said quietly. "At least for now. Play the hand and see where it leads."

"Okay," Stiles said, the soft note of relief in his voice the only thing Derek needed to sooth down the fear trying to knot his stomach. Stiles' hand squeezed his, holding on tightly.

"I agree too, in case anybody was wondering," Scott put in with wry mildness.

Stiles grinned and clapped him on the shoulder and even Derek smiled despite himself, the heavy pressure of the moment dissipating a little.

"Well, now that the unanimous vote is in, let's go before our trucker finishes up his pie."”

That was quite a mouthful, wasn’t it?! But it was useful information, which they kind of were in desperate need of. And I agree with Stiles, it’s one of their best options, at the moment, I’m afraid, unless you count the obvious one running away again, but this time going out of the country. Which means that both Stiles and Scott’s parents are at risk, but then again, they would still be in danger, whether or not Stiles, Derek and Scott decides to flee the country, so I guess, no matter what they do, they’re in between a rock and a hard place!?

Yeah, that’s right, Derek still knows a hell of a lot more than Stiles and Scott does about being in this horrible predicament, which is why I think it’s so stupid of him to think that if he gives himself up, (because that’s what he meant when he, in his inner monologue made up his mind about what to do if and when things really went from bad to worse, at least when it comes to Stiles having to choose between Derek or his dad, right?!), that it would keep Stiles from losing his dad and Scott, his mom. That they would just magically spare Stiles and Scott in turn, because they sadly knows too much and plus Kate has unfinished businesses with Stiles, right?! Which is something that Kate won’t give up on, to torture the boy who got away from right under her clutches, before she finally kills him, because she will do that right?!

So in a way, Derek’s not exactly lying to Stiles and Scott, he’s just not telling them about his plan to give himself up, if it comes to that, which I, for one hope it won’t, obviously! But I think that Stiles eventually going to notice that something’s up with Derek, because that boy is smart, but then again if you’re in love, like he is, then you might be blind to your partner’s faults, not that Derek’s really got faults exactly, but I’m sure you know what I mean or maybe not, seeing as I’m not exactly sure I do, laughs!

Okay, to wrap this up before it gets too long, it’s good that they all agreed on keeping up with the checkpoints!

“Chris Argent pulled to a stop in front of the sprawling, sea-side mansion at the end of the long, secluded drive. He hadn't needed directions to find the place. He remembered it well enough. Growing up, his family had vacationed here multiple times. Gerard did not own the villa, but it was a vacation and rental property owned by one of the senator's many friends and his family had long been given unrestricted use of the property whenever they came to the West Coast.

Not all the memories Chris had of this place were good, but it was where he had fallen in love with the wild and beautiful California landscape as a boy, and was perhaps part of why he had chosen to return to this side of the country years later. He never thought he'd come back to this house again, not after everything that had happened, but life seemed determined to never work out the way he might hope.”

Well, life never turns out exactly like we want it to, does it?! And I’m sure that Chris never wanted to and expected to have to go back to that house as well, it must have been hard to grow up in such a family like theirs, huh?! With Gerard wanting his children to essential do everything he wanted them to, regardless whatever it might be criminal or not!

“It was almost 2AM in the morning and the carefully manicured lawn was draped in darkness, but there were plenty of lights on in the house. Chris picked out several sentries hidden in the shadows as he made his way up the path and he was sure there were others he could not see. Kate would not be taking any chances, not with him. She knew better.

The door wasn't locked and he didn't bother knocking. He stepped inside to find Kate and four men waiting for him. No doubt she had been aware of his approach since he turned in at the gate, if not before.

Dressed in a dark, sleeveless turtleneck and jeans, Kate lounged in the drawing room doorway, holding a whisky glass and watching as her men quickly and efficiently frisked her brother down in the foyer.

"Hello, Chris, it's been a while," she greeted with a smile that might have looked friendly under other circumstances. "You look like hell, want a drink?" she held up her glass and nodded her head back towards where Chris knew the liquor sideboard to be located in the drawing room.

"Hello, Kate. Wish I could say it was good to see you again," Chris returned much more icily. He shook his head at her offer, holding out his arms and offering no resistance to the expected search and no protest when the men relieved him of the Glock he wore in the shoulder holster under his jacket.

Kate eyed the confiscated weapon, raising a wry eyebrow at Chris.

Chris gave her a half shrug. "Wouldn't want to show up underdressed," he said dryly. "Where's Allison?"”

Haha, loved Chris comment when they found his weapon, fun and then he goes directly to why he’s there in the first place, nice!

And the rest comes in the next review.

Here comes the seventh part of the review of chapter twenty-two.

“"I will be in touch again, sometime within the next three days," Chris continued. "I will call you, do not call me, Scott, are you calling from your phone?"

"Yes."

"Do you have any other phones you can use, unconnected with either you or Stiles?"

"No?" Scott looked questioningly at Derek and Stiles.

"We can get a burner tomorrow," Stiles suggested.

"Do that if you can," Chris agreed. "And send me a text so I have your new number. Pretend you're a sweepstakes and I might have won something, text Y to continue receiving messages, that kind of thing. If you can't get a new phone, then hang onto Scott's, but whatever you do, do not leave it turned on. They know who you are and tracking phones is easy. Even if you get a burner, only turn it on twice a day at pre-arranged times, and leave it on for no more than two minutes. If you don't hear from me during that time, turn it off again after the two minutes are up and wait until the next checkpoint. I will be using different phone numbers but I will not leave messages and I will not send texts. You are not to trust anything unless you speak to me personally and recognize my voice. Do you understand? This is important," Chris stressed that, but did not pause for an answer and instead kept speaking.

"If at any time, I say that Allison says to tell Scott she loves him, that will be a sign that I've been compromised," he said grimly. "Either I'm either being forced to make the call, or I think someone is listening in on the conversation. Either way, you are to disregard anything else I said, ditch the phone and head for whichever border you have the best chance of reaching. Neither Mexico or Canada will be safe in the long term, but you can use either of them as a jumping off point to somewhere else. If three days pass and you still haven't heard anything from me, then you need to do the same thing."

Despite his obvious haste, Chris sounded uncommonly calm and practical about everything. He sounded like someone with experience, and perhaps that, more than anything else, was what made the three young men on the other end of the line listen to the flow of instructions without interruption or objection.

"If the phone always goes on at the same time, they could notice the pattern and be waiting to trace it," Stiles now felt obliged to point out.

"Which is why we're not going to use a set time," Chris agreed. "Are you familiar with pi, in mathematics?" he didn't wait for an answer. "Use the numbers in pi as the pattern, moving back one place every time and alternating AM and PM. If you hit a number that doesn't work when corresponding to a time, like a 6-9 in the minute slot, just drop it down to a 5. Start with PM and ignore the initial 3 to make the pattern harder to recognize, so the first call is at 1:41 PM, the next is 4:15 AM..."”

It’s definitely not Chris’ first rodeo, that’s much a given, because he knows what he’s doing, which is probably why they’re listening to him, right?! And the instructions sound pretty damn smart, at least to me, code words or in this case using his daughter’s name to let them know that he’s been compromised, damn that’s clever!

Uh, Pi, I’d so not know how to follow anything with pi, because I really did (and still does, btw) suck at mathematics, of any kind, not kidding! But it sounds like a very clever way to keep in touch with someone if you don’t want a third party to find out about it, so they should definitely make use of what Chris suggestions/orders!

"And the next at 1:59 PM, yeah, got it," Stiles finished for him. "Okay, but ... my dad, and Scott's mom... if Kate knows who we are, does that mean our parents are in danger?" he asked, trying very hard to keep his voice steady.

"Not yet," Chris hedged. "Allison's and my involvement has added some new complications to the situation. It's unlikely that Kate will make any drastic new moves until after I've spoken with her."

Stiles didn't seem to like the implication that it was only a matter of time until that state of affairs changed. "And then what? They're not a threat. They don't know anything!" he protested somewhat angrily.

"And I wish that mattered," Chris sounded suddenly weary. "But it doesn't. Given the chance, they will most likely seek to use your parents as leverage to get you out of hiding. Using those you love against you is a favorite tact of theirs," he said bluntly and there was no missing the thick note of bitterness and anger in his voice. "But that only works if they know how to get in touch with you to deliver the threat," he pointed out. "Blackmail is only effective if you can get the threat to its intended mark. That is why it is so important for you to not let yourselves be found. In the short term, as long as you stay out of sight, your parents should be safe."

"And in the long term?" Stiles prodded.

"I don't know, Stiles," Chris admitted quietly. "I told you, I will do everything I can, for you and for them. I never wanted any of you anywhere near this world. I never wanted any of this. I know it doesn't mean anything, but I am sorry. I'll be in touch. Don't forget what I told you." With that, he hung up.”

It’s good that at least someone knowns pi, so that they can follow Chris instructions and black mail sucks, hopefully it won’t come to that!

Yep, Derek knows too well, how much it doesn’t matter if just a few members in your family know something that might be dangerous, because if these people think you knows too much, then they will kill you whether or not you really do know anything or not!?

And the rest comes in the next review.

Here comes the sixth part of the review of chapter twenty-two.

“Derek was good at identifying vacant, usable spaces. He'd spent enough of his life squatting in such places, he ought to be. Stiles wanted to be near the bus station and they needed somewhere semi-private where they could hold a speaker-phone conversation and not be overheard. Derek identified an empty, unused loft space that was being renovated just up the street from the bus station. Within a matter of minutes he had the three of them inside, standing amid stacks of wallboard and fluttering plastic drop cloths.

Fresh construction dust said this was an active site, but being as it was almost midnight, it was extremely unlikely that any workmen were going to be around again for another few hours at least. They would be long gone by then.

Stiles was of the opinion that using a payphone left them too exposed, plus there would be no way for all three of them to be in on the conversation. Scott's cell was the best choice.

They were near the bus station so that in case anyone traced down the origin of the call, their pursuers would have cause to conjecture that, having recently lost the car they had been using, they might be intending to take one of the buses. Stiles had gotten hold of a schedule. In addition to the normal, local routes, there were three long distance greyhound busses departing near dawn tomorrow morning. With any luck, anyone coming after them would think those to be strong leads and pursue off in those directions, while in reality the three of them were going to hitch a ride out of town in the back of an empty semi-trailer that they'd discovered parked at a truck stop a few blocks down. The lock on the trailer was broken and the driver had just been entering the all night diner when they left. It was a fortuitous find to which Stiles had quickly adjusted his plans, but it meant that they had to do this swiftly if they wanted to get back and stow away before the driver returned.

Their breathing seemed loud in the hushed, empty space as the three of them huddled together, bathed in the muted light from Scott's cell phone. He pulled up Chris Argent's cell phone number from his contact's list, or Alison's Dad as it was actually labeled. At Stiles' instruction, he didn't call from his contact list, but instead memorized the number and punched it into the keypad so that he could prepend the necessary digits to block caller ID. If Mr. Argent wasn't alone, they didn't need to advertise who was calling. Scott hit talk and put the call on speakerphone.”

Well, I suppose he’s to be good at it, identifying vacant and usable spaces, I mean, simply because he’s been staying in a lot of them, being on the run for the last several years. It really must have been a lonely kind of existence (especially after his sister got murdered), but at least he’s no longer alone, which is great, of course, even though it means that he’s has now unintentionally dragged someone into a life on the run!

I like their getaway plan, it’s really quite clever, as well as with Scott memorizing Chris Argents phone number, so they won’t be identified by the caller ID, which is something I haven’t really thought about before, to be honest!

“Any doubt about whether they'd be able to get hold of the older man at such a late hour was put to rest when the call was answered on the second ring.

"Hello?" Chris Argent's voice sounded tense and guarded, like he didn't expect to hear anything good on a call from a blocked number at this hour.

"Um, hey, Mr. Argent," Scott said, as if suddenly realizing he had no idea what to say.

"Scott?! Where are you? No, wait, don't tell me," Chris corrected himself quickly, even as Derek and Stiles emphatically shook their heads at Scott. "Are you somewhere safe?"

"For the moment, I guess. What about Allison? Do you know what happened? Is she okay?" Scott asked in a concerned rush.

"For the moment," there was a slightly clipped note to Chris' dry, succinct response. "I'm still on the road, but I have been given assurances that she's all right."

"You mean you talked to Kate," Derek said flatly.

There was a pause on the other side of the call. "Derek Hale?" Chris asked after a moment, the question sounding more like a deduction than recognition. "I assume Stiles is there too," he said after another long moment of silence in which Derek did not respond to his inquiry. "Listen, I'm sure you have a lot of questions and so do I, but we can't stay on the phone too long; it isn't safe. Yes, I spoke with Kate. She said Allison's all right and I'm going to meet them both right now."

"Where? Where did they take her?" Scott cut in.

"That is not something you need to know," Chris said firmly, his words quick and his tone all business. "The last place you want to be is anywhere near us. I will take care of Allison. You boys are in very deep waters right now, and you need to be very careful."

"Oh wow, you think?!" Stiles scoffed incredulously at the massive understatement.

Chris ignored him. "You all need to stay out of sight and lay low for a little while," he continued, still talking rapidly and firmly, like one used to giving orders and being obeyed. "First, I need to make sure Allison is safe and find out how matters stand. After that, assuming I'm still alive, I will see what I can do for you. You'll need new identities and safe transport out of the country. I'll see what can be done about arraignments."

"Out of the country?" Scott questioned, sounding distinctly unhappy at what he was hearing. "For how long?"

"Possibly forever, if you don't want to be looking over your shoulder your whole life," Chris' response was not encouraging. "I'm sorry, Scott, but you have no idea the people you're dealing with and what they are capable of."

"I have a pretty good idea," Derek put in bitterly, no small hint of anger in the words.

Scott was shaking his head. "But ... but my mom! I can't just ... and Allison!"

"I wish I had time for this, but right now I don't. We need to keep this call as short as possible. I need you to just listen to me. Derek," Chris said tensely, "You understand what you're facing. Explain it to them. I can't begin to atone for what has been done, and I won't insult you with hollow apologies. I will do what I can for you, but I have to secure Allison first. Being an Argent in no wise makes her safe. Trust me... blood is nothing but a curse in this family, and they are not hesitant to spill it." His tone had gone dark.”

I loved the entire phone conversation they (Stiles, Derek and Scott) had with Allison’s dad, it was nice to hear from Chris, it was also a pretty fun conversation at times, especially due to what Scott and Stiles said sometimes during the first part of it!

And the rest comes in the next review.