At lunchtime, Jacob, Stiles, and Malia emerged from their gaming room—also known as "detention"—and headed toward the cafeteria.
They ran into Principal Thomas in the hallway.
Jacob greeted him casually. "Hey, man. Where've you been? You didn't join us for a game this morning like you usually do."
Principal Thomas sighed. "I was busy. The parents of that student who… mutilated himself were here with the sheriff, asking questions. Now they're talking to our new English teacher, Victoria Argent, and her daughter Allison in my office."
Jacob raised an eyebrow. "Talking to them about what?"
"The sheriff told me they searched Matt Daehler's room and found some disturbing pictures of your girlfriend Allison."
Stiles leaned in. "What kind of pictures?"
"The room was filled with creepy, photoshopped images of Allison. Matt had taken a lot of pictures of her in various places and digitally inserted himself into them—romantic poses, possessive poses. The whole thing was deeply unsettling."
Jacob shrugged, utterly unbothered. "Maybe he finally realized he'd never have a chance with Allison and mutilated himself out of frustration."
Principal Thomas gave him a flat look. "I don't know why he did it, and frankly, I don't care. But you kids should be careful. Stalkers like him tend to become violent. They usually end up hurting the people they're obsessed with."
"Don't worry," Jacob said. "We'll be careful."
"Alright. I'm going to have lunch in the gaming… ahem, detention room. Since my office has been taken over by the sheriff."
The three of them shared knowing smiles. Jacob nodded. "Okay. Have fun."
Principal Thomas headed off to relax in the "detention room," and Jacob, Stiles, and Malia continued to the cafeteria.
---
They found Lydia and Erica already seated at their usual table. Jacob slid in beside Lydia just as Allison joined them, settling next to Jacob.
Lydia glanced at her. "What did Noah want?"
"He wanted to know if I knew Matt Daehler." Allison's expression was calm, but her eyes held a flicker of disgust. "They found a lot of photos of me in his room. Apparently, he'd been stalking me—taking pictures and editing them to look like we were in a relationship."
Lydia turned to Jacob. "Did you know he was stalking her?"
"I noticed him taking pictures," Jacob admitted. "I didn't know it was that bad." He looked at Allison. "What did Victoria say when Noah told her?"
Allison smiled—a genuine, amused smile. "She's pissed. She's still yelling at Matt's parents in the principal's office. Telling them why they didn't notice their son is a sick, stalking psychopath. That they're bad parents. That their son belongs in a nuthouse. She's enjoying herself."
Jacob grinned. "I'm sure she is." He looked around the cafeteria. "Where's Scott? And Derek's betas?"
Erica shrugged. "We don't know. Scott said he was going to follow Jackson after class, and I haven't seen him since."
Stiles grabbed Jacob's arm. "Come on. Let's go find him."
"Why? For all we know, he's just fooling around with his girlfriend."
Stiles dragged him up anyway. "Just let's go. I feel guilty for leaving him alone watching Jackson all night."
As Stiles pulled him toward the exit, Jacob complained, "Then go look for him yourself! Why drag me?"
"Come on, he's your stepson! Aren't you worried he might be in trouble?"
Jacob sighed. "He's strong enough to protect himself."
They left the cafeteria, and Stiles immediately texted Scott: [Dude, where are you?]
Scott replied: [Lacrosse field. Monitoring Jackson.]
---
They found Scott sitting on the bleachers with Tracy, Isaac, and Boyd, all watching Jackson laugh with his friends on the grass below.
Jacob and Stiles climbed up to join them.
Scott gestured. "We're all in the same class, but let me properly introduce you." He pointed. "Jacob, Stiles—this is Isaac and Boyd."
Boyd and Isaac both looked at Jacob warily and nodded stiffly.
Jacob raised an eyebrow but said nothing. He gave Tracy a small wave. "Hey, Tracy."
"Hey," she replied.
Jacob moved to the side, sat down, and pulled out his phone, scrolling idly.
Stiles greeted everyone, then glanced at Jackson, then at Scott. "Did you tell them? About Jackson?"
Scott nodded. "Yes."
Jacob didn't look up from his phone. "Then you can forget about saving him."
Scott frowned. "Why?"
"Can't you feel the anger radiating off Isaac?" Jacob's tone was flat. "He's probably planning to kill Jackson for murdering his father. Derek will definitely try to kill Jackson. And Peter? He'll try to become the Kanima's master—control him for his own purposes."
Scott turned to Isaac. "Are you really planning to kill Jackson?"
Isaac's jaw tightened. "Yes. He killed my father. He wasn't a good father, but he was still my father."
"You can't do that," Scott said. "Jackson's being used. The real killer is the one controlling him."
Isaac's eyes flashed. "After I kill Jackson, I'll kill his master too."
Stiles gave Isaac a flat look. "Well, genius, if you kill Jackson, you won't be able to find his master." He turned to Scott. "Remind me again—why did you tell them?"
Scott rubbed the back of his neck. "Since you didn't show up last night to monitor Jackson with me… I thought they could help."
Stiles threw his hands up. "I already apologized, okay?" He glanced at Boyd and Isaac, then back at Scott. "Besides, they can't help you. Isaac wants to kill Jackson. Boyd doesn't look like he even cares. And if there's a fight, they'll just be burdens you have to protect."
Boyd's eyes narrowed. "Why would we need Scott's protection? He's just a beta like us. And we don't know who's stronger—him or us."
Stiles gave Boyd a pitying look. "Yeah, sure, man. Whatever makes you happy."
Boyd didn't like that look. He stood, took a step toward Stiles, and growled low in his chest. He reached out with a clawed hand, aiming for Stiles's shoulder—just to scare him.
Stiles smiled. It was not a nice smile.
He caught Boyd's wrist mid-reach and began to squeeze.
Boyd's eyes widened. He tried to pull free. He couldn't. Stiles squeezed harder, and Boyd let out a pained shout. "Ahh! Let go!"
Stiles didn't let go. He added just a little more pressure, and Boyd's wrist bones cracked audibly. The beta dropped to his knees, clawing uselessly at Stiles's arm with his other hand. His claws scraped against Stiles's skin—and didn't even leave a mark.
Stiles leaned down, locking eyes with him. "Don't let your new, pitiful powers get to your head, little mutt. Otherwise, you might get yourself killed."
Scott stepped in. "Alright, Stiles. You made your point. Let him go."
Stiles released Boyd's wrist and walked to sit beside Jacob, a satisfied smirk on his face. "That felt good. Now I know why you like bullying people."
Jacob looked up from his phone, offended. "Hey, I'm not a bully. Don't slander me."
Stiles snorted. "Yeah, right. Tell that to Peter. And the poor bastard who was stalking Allison. And the old guy you made drink magma. And the witch you turned into a bloody mush. And the yeti. Want me to keep going?"
Jacob protested, "All of them provoked me first! I don't go out of my way to bully people. Unlike you. You're a supervillain in the making."
Stiles looked genuinely offended. "Hey! I'm not a bad guy."
Jacob smirked. "Are you sure? Boyd just tried to scare you, and you said you'd kill him."
Stiles sputtered. "I was just scaring him..." He stopped, reconsidered, then shrugged. "You know what? I bullied him, and I felt good. So screw you. If I'm a supervillain in the making, you're already a full-blown supervillain."
Jacob just smiled and said nothing.
Boyd stood up, cradling his already-healing but still aching wrist. He shot Stiles a wary look, then turned and walked away without a word. Isaac followed.
Tracy stared at Stiles. "I thought you were a normal human. But apparently, you're not. What are you?"
Stiles flashed a grin. "I'm the funny guy."
Tracy pointed at Jacob. "And him?"
"He's the pervert." Stiles jerked a thumb at Scott. "And your boyfriend's the idiot."
Jacob laughed and kept scrolling through his phone. Scott frowned. "Hey! Why am I the idiot?"
Stiles sighed. "Because if you weren't an idiot, you wouldn't have told Isaac that Jackson is the Kanima who killed his father, and you would have thought it through before telling Derek's betas about Jackson. Now, like Jacob said, Derek's going to try to kill Jackson, and Peter's going to start sneaking around to find a way to control the Kanima himself."
Scott scratched the back of his head sheepishly. "I didn't think that far ahead. I thought they'd help me save Jackson."
Stiles said, "From now on? Don't do the thinking. If you have a thought, run it by me, Jacob, Lydia, or Allison first. And whatever you do—do not run it by Cogman or Malia. Those two will just make things worse. And bloodier."
The bell rang, cutting off further discussion. They gathered their things and headed back to class.
---
After school ended, Jacob drove to the mansion. Cogman arrived shortly after to pick up Allison, Lydia, and Malia. Stiles and Scott, meanwhile, went to keep an eye on Jackson.
---
That night in Serendell, Jacob, Allison, Lydia, Malia, and Melissa gathered in the main living room of the palace. The palace was enormous, and the royal residence—where Jacob and his wives stayed—was strictly off-limits to everyone else. Jacob had made sure Scott, Stiles, Natalie, Noah, and the Argents couldn't teleport there. Privacy was important.
Jacob sat on the couch next to Lydia, munching on popcorn, when a translucent system window materialized before his eyes.
[System Reminder
Event Sign-In Available: Host can sign in after witnessing Gerard Argent receive the Bite from Derek Hale tomorrow.
Location: An abandoned warehouse on the outskirts of town. I will guide you there, Host.
Remaining Time: 23 hours]
Jacob's lips curved into a satisfied smile. 'Sweet. Another sign-in. Can't wait to see what I get this time.'
In a great mood, he dismissed the window and turned his attention back to his wives. They were laughing and talking, sharing snacks while watching Friends. Their laughter was genuine and loud—a perfect, peaceful end to the day.
To be continued… 😊