Love Under The Moon

Chapter 29: The Veterinarian

Scott, Stiles, Derek, And I all met at the veterinarian.

"where's the vet?" Derek asked, looking around. "Is he going to help us or not?"

"That depends," a guy standing there in a white jacket said with the name tag of Deaton. I imagined he was the vet. "Your friend, Jackson. Are we planning to kill him or save him?"

"Kill him." "Save him." Derek and Scott said at the same time.

They looked at each other. "Save him," Scott repeated and Derek sighed.

"Save him," Derek sighed.

Deaton let us back to the back room. "Watch what you touch."

"So what are you? Some kind of witch?" Stiles asked.

"No, I'm a veterinarian."

"Unfortunately, I don't see anything here that's going to be an effective defense against a paralytic toxin."

"We're open to suggestions," Scott said.

"What about an effective offense?" Deaton asked.

"No, we already tried," Derek answered. "I nearly took its head off. And argent emptied an entire clip into it. The thing just gets back up."

"Has it shown any weaknesses?"

"Well, one it can't swim."

"Does that go for Jackson as well?"

"No," Scott answered. "He's the captain of the swim team."

"Essentially, you're trying to catch two people," Deaton said, opening a drawer and pulling out a coin. "A puppet and a puppeteer. One killed the husband, but the other had to take care of the wife. Do we know why?"

"I don't think Jackson could do it," Scott realized. "His mother died pregnant too, and she was maybe murdered. I think he couldn't let the same thing happen to someone else."

"How do you know it's not part of the rules?" Derek asked.

"The kanima kills murderers. If Jackson kills the wife, then the baby dies too," Stiles answered.

"Does that mean the father was a murderer?" Scott asked.

"Wouldn't surprise me if he was," Derek said.

"Hold on," Deaton interrupted our thoughts. "The book says they're bonded, right? What if the fear of water isn't coming from Jackson, but from the person controlling him? What if something that affects the kanima also affects its master? Meaning what?"

"Meaning we can catch them," Scott said.

"Both of them."

"So what's the plan?" I asked.

Deaton opened a cabinet and held a syringe.

"Ketamine?" Stiles asked.

"It's the same stuff we use on the dogs, just a higher dosage. If you can get close enough to Jackson, it should slow him down enough to buy you some time," Deaton explained and then handed us a bag of stuff. "This is some of what you'll use to create the barrier. This part is for you, Stiles. Only you."

"Uh, that sounds like a lot of pressure. Can we maybe find a slightly less pressure-filled task for me?" Stiles breathes nervously.

"It's from the Mountain ash tree, which is believed by many cultures to protect against the supernatural. This office is lined with ashwood, making it difficult for someone like Scott to cause me any trouble."

"Okay, so then what? I just spread this around the whole building and then either Jackson or whoever's controlling him can't cross it?"

"They'll be trapped."

"Doesn't sound too hard."

"Not all there is. Think of it like gunpowder. It's just powder until a spark ignites it. You need to be that spark, Stiles."

"If you mean light myself on fire, I don't think I'm up for that."

"Let me try a different analogy. I used to golf. I learned that the best golfers never swing before first imagining where they want the ball to go. They see it in their mind and their mind takes over. It can be pretty extraordinary what the force of your own will can accomplish. Force of will. If if this is going to work, Stiles, you have to believe it."

"Mm-hmm. All right," Stiles sighed.

"Elizabeth, Boyd, and I will keep watch, make sure nothing unwanted shows up," Derek said.

"Like the Hunters," I noted.

"Isaac and Erica can watch Jackson make sure he doesn't kill the girl they're after. Scott, find the person who's controlling him."

"Sounds like a plan," I said. "Hopefully a successful one."

"It has to be," Scott said. "Or Jackson's going to kill someone."