Chapter 23: Peter Hayes

You’re trouble, Lydia,” Damien whispered, backing her gently against the wall of the empty school washroom.

She smirked. “And you like trouble.”

His lips brushed hers before pulling her into a deep kiss, her hands tangled in his hair, his body pressing into hers. The room was silent except for the sound of their breathing and the hum of the flickering light overhead.

Then the door swung open, Lyra stood frozen at the doorway, her eyes widened with shock.

Damien pulled away instantly, guilt flashing in his eyes. “Lyra…”

But she was already turning away.

“Wait!” he called, pushing past Lydia. He rushed out of the bathroom, chasing after her. “Lyra, stop!”

She didn’t, she walked faster, blinking away whatever was burning behind her eyes.

“Lyra, please…just let me explain,” he said, finally catching up and grabbing her wrist.

She spun around. “Explain what? That you were making out with Lydia in the washroom while pretending like we didn’t have something?”

“I wasn’t pretending,” Damien said softly.

Lyra looked away. “It didn’t look that way.”

He sighed, raking a hand through his hair. “I thought you didn’t like me, you never said anything. You always kept your distance.”

“Because I didn’t want to mess up what we had!” she snapped. “But I do like you, Damien. I’ve liked you for a long time.”

Damien’s breath caught. “You do?”

She nodded. “But it doesn’t matter now, right? You’ve already chosen Lydia.”

He stepped closer. “I haven’t chosen anyone. I didn’t know how you felt, Lyra. That’s why I let Lydia flirt with me and hat’s why I kissed her . But it never felt like this.”

Lyra blinked. “Like what?”

“Like my heart’s beating too fast and I’m scared I ruined everything with the one person I actually care about.”

She didn’t respond. She just stared at him, her eyes soft but unsure.

“I’m not perfect, Lyra,” Damien said. “But if you give me a chance, I’ll prove I’m worth it.”

There was a pause, followed by science. The two of them did nothing but stare at each other.

Then, finally, Lyra whispered, “i’ll give you just one chance.”

Damien lips curved into a smile. “That’s all I need.”

“I never knew you'd be this fast.”Maya said as she opened the front door. Her face looked tired and her voice sounded flat.

“What’s going on?” Damien asked, glancing around.

Maya didn’t answer right away. Instead, she turned and faced them, her arms folded tightly across her chest.

“This morning,” she began, “Someone dumped a dead body in front of my house.”

Lyra’s eyes widened. “What?”

“It was the body of an old man, I don't know he is." Maya continued. “His head was bitten off, it looked like something or someone attacked him like an animal but it wasn’t just some animal. It was done on purpose.”

Lydia moved closer. “You’re sure about that.?”

Maya nodded. “Whoever did it wanted to send a message.”

Jack looked confused. “But why you? Why in front of your house?”

Maya’s voice dropped. “That’s the problem no one knows where I live. I made sure of it, i’ve never told anyone… except from one person.”

Damien frowned. “Who?”

Maya met his eyes. “Peter and since he's back in town he's my first suspect.”

The room went silent, Lyra eyed glanced at each one of them.

“So… he’s really back,” Damien said.

Maya nodded slowly. “Yes, he’s back in town and he’s already started playing games, I never believed he was back when jack said it.”

Jack paced near the window. “Why would he kill an old man and leave the body here, he just got out of jail, he's supposed to be low-key?”

“Because he wants me to know he’s watching,” Maya said. “He always liked using fear, that's what he’s best at.”

Lydia’s brow furrowed. “I thought you said you're both on good terms.”

“We are,” Maya replied. “But I don't trust peter and if he’s free… he’s going to be more dangerous than before.”

Damien clenched his jaw. “Is he coming for just you?”

Maya looked down. “No, I don’t think it’s me he wants this time.”

She lifted her gaze. “I think he’s after you, Damien and he's making it clear.”

Damien furrowe.”Just like you said.”

“You’re the new Alpha, you’re rising fast you have power,” she said. “And Peter, he likes power. There's one thing about himz he will stop at nothing till he gets what he wants even if it means killing everyone I'm town.

Lyra stepped back.”Are you serious? He can't do that. ?”

Lydia shook her head.”Have you guys forgotten, he's a hybrid he can take anything from any of us, he dosen't care how many people he kills. All that makes him stronger."

Jack rubbed his forehead. “This is bad, what do we do?”

Lydia nodded. “We need a plan, we can’t just sit around waiting for him to strike again. I'm sure he's going to come see me and he'll try to manipulate me to join hands with him.”

“We need to act fast but we don’t even know where he is,” Lyra said. “How do we stop someone like him?”

Maya walked over to the window, pulling the blinds aside just a little. “He’ll come back, he always does. He”ll cat nice at first but if he isn't taken seriously he's going to attack.

“What do we do until then cause we all know he's going to attack especially when he sees me?”Damien asked.

“We teach you how to control your powers, we watch each other’s backs and we don’t trust anyone,”Maya replied.

"It's not going to be easy but we've always been strong so let's give this a try, we won't back down." Lyra smiled.

Everyone nodded, but fear lingered in their eyes. In the dark forest the wind howled and inside the old house they all knew this was just the beginning.

If Peter Hayes was coming for them, they needed to act fast