Morning had settled over the Argent house, and from a narrow gap in the living room curtains, Kate watched Trevor return from his morning run, her eyes tracking every step, every shift of muscle beneath his shirt — the straight posture, the controlled breathing, the steady rhythm — and it was the trained gaze of someone in her line of work, assessing, measuring, calculating, until suddenly Trevor turned his head toward the window and for a split second, their eyes almost met, making Kate let the curtain fall at once as she stepped away with practiced ease and headed into the kitchen where Allison was having breakfast.
"Does Trevor run every day?" Kate asked, and Allison answered, "I think so. He said something about needing to get back in shape," which made Kate murmur a noncommittal, "Hm," and when Allison asked, "What?" she replied, "Nothing. Just curious." Allison shrugged and said, "If you're that curious, you could just ask him," but Kate deflected again. "I'm curious why a Belmont would move to Beacon Hills. No offense to the town, of course… but there's nothing particularly interesting here." Allison pushed back. "I don't know… but why do you always put so much emphasis on his family?" Kate responded smoothly, "I have no idea what you're talking about, sweetheart," only for Allison to counter, "Oh, come on. You, Dad, and Mom always stress his family whenever you talk about Trevor." Kate rested her hands on the counter, thoughtful for a moment before answering, "His family is very old. Much older than ours. They've always had stronger ties to Europe. Seeing a member of the Belmont family living here is… unusual," and Allison's eyes widened as she asked, "Wait. Our family is old?" making Kate's lips curve in a faint smile as she replied, "Maybe you should take more interest in our family than in other people's, sweetheart." Allison made a small face and said, "Right… well, it's time to go. See you later, Kate," and Kate called after her, "Drive safe, honey."
Allison left with Trevor, the car pulling away toward school, and Kate remained in the doorway watching until the vehicle disappeared around the bend in the street, but the moment it was out of sight, her smile shifted — cold, calculating — and she made a few quick calls, gathered her things, and left to meet an old acquaintance.
Not long after, Kate stood with two armed men in front of what remained of the Hale house, the air still carrying the scent of old ashes, and they entered and searched every burned-out room, every dark corner, every lingering shadow — but there was nothing, no recent scent, no sign of life, because fortunately for Derek, Trevor had warned him the house was no longer safe, that hunters, especially Kate, could show up at any time, so as a precaution Derek had relocated temporarily and, by luck or perhaps fate, had found shelter in an abandoned subway station.
"Damn it…" Kate kicked a charred piece of furniture, scattering ash across the floor, and muttered, "He ran," before drawing a steady breath to compose herself and pulling out her phone to call her brother. "Hi, Chris. Derek's gone. When I got here, the place was empty." Chris's voice sharpened. "What do you mean? What are you even doing there?" Kate answered, "I came to investigate Derek," and Chris shot back, "Don't give me that. You know we follow the code. You can't just break in without proof. What if he were the Alpha? Without backup, you wouldn't stand a chance." Kate countered, "If you were actually doing something instead of standing around— And speaking of backup, I have a pretty good idea who we should call next time," but Chris cut her off firmly. "No. Don't involve him. I promised his grandfather I'd protect him." Kate pressed, "You know he'd be a valuable addition against the Alpha," and Chris simply said her name in warning: "Kate." She relented. "Fine. We'll talk later." "Later," Chris ended the call, but her expression made it clear that conversation was far from over.
As Kate drove home, something very different was unfolding at the hospital, where a red-haired nurse slipped quietly into a room and locked the door behind her, saying, "I came as fast as I could, Peter." A man sat in a chair, half his face marred by deep burn scars, staring at the wall in absolute silence until at the sound of her voice he slowly turned his head, and she corrected herself quickly: "I mean… sir." He replied, "Better," then rose and walked toward her, making the nurse seem to shrink with every step as though the air around them had grown heavier, and he lifted her chin with two fingers. "Looks like you've adjusted to the transformation." She answered, "Yes, sir." He continued, "Good. The full moon is approaching. Once you can control yourself during it, you'll achieve your hybrid form," and she simply nodded. "Did you do what I asked?" he pressed, and she answered, "Yes. I found out Scott's mother works here at the hospital," making a slow smile spread across Peter's scarred face. "Perfect," he said, releasing her chin and returning to his chair as he murmured almost to himself, "Oh… what am I going to do with you, Scott?" The nurse asked, "Why do you want him, sir?" and Peter replied, "I've told you before. We're stronger as a pack. Three betas and one Alpha… everyone becomes more powerful. And I'll need that strength to deal with the hunters in this town." He tilted his head slightly and asked, "By the way, did you look into the Belmont?" She answered, "Yes, sir. Trevor Belmont II arrived recently and lives near the Argents. Do you want me to follow him?" but Peter shook his head. "No. Don't go after him alone. First, we form the pack. On the next full moon, we'll draw Scott out. A newly turned werewolf won't be able to control himself. We'll make him destroy his old ties. Once he cuts himself off from them… he'll join my pack." She asked, "And Derek, sir?" and he replied, "I'll deal with him later. It's easier to manipulate a young wolf than an experienced one. Besides… he was never particularly open to following me." She nodded and said, "I understand," and he dismissed her with a simple, "Good. Now go. We don't want unwanted attention." She left in silence, and Peter remained seated, eyes fixed on nothing, planning.
That night, after the Argent family dinner, Kate lay on her bed exhausted from arguing with Chris about the code and the limits she clearly had no intention of respecting, when a soft knock sounded at the door. "Come in." Allison stepped inside and said, "Hi, Kate," making Kate sit up when she saw her. "Hi, sweetheart. Do you need something?" Allison hesitated before answering, "I… I was curious about what you said about our family. And coincidentally, my history teacher assigned a project about researching our own family." Kate smiled, thinking to herself that her luck wasn't as bad as she thought, and said aloud, "Of course, sweetheart. Actually… I have something for you." She removed a silver necklace from around her neck — a wolf and a star intertwined — and fastened it around Allison's neck, saying, "This is a family heirloom. Look at that symbol and research 'La Bête du Gévaudan.' You'll realize our family's history is much older than you imagine." Allison touched the pendant and asked, "Thank you, Kate… but what about the necklace? You never take it off." Kate answered smoothly, "Consider it an early birthday present," and Allison beamed, saying, "Thank you, thank you! I'll take good care of it." Kate replied, "I'm glad you like it," and Allison walked to the door, but before leaving she turned back and added, "Thank you so much for the help," making Kate smile and say, "Anytime."
When the door closed, Kate's smile changed — wider, more dangerous — and she allowed herself one final thought: You won't be able to hide this much longer, Chris… but don't worry. I'll teach Allison properly.