Instinct » Liam Dunbar [Book 3]

19

CHAPTER NINETEEN » RELEASE
"Did you really just want me here to talk?"

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"I'm not letting them out," Sheriff Stilinski stated firmly later that evening, dropping a file down on the table with a loud crash. "We got two bodies covered in slash marks. They confessed to killing two people."

"Hunters," Scott corrected, looking up at him with an incredulous expression on his face, as if he couldn't quite believe that Stilinski wasn't taking our side straight away.

"People."

"Assholes," I muttered under my breath, obviously loud enough for everyone to hear as their attention all turned to me momentarily. Malia, but down on her lip, seeming to be stifling a laugh, whilst Stilinski shot me an unimpressed look.

"Self defence or not," Sheriff Stilinski's hard eyes turned back to address Scott. "They're still here, the other guys are dead. And there's a process I have to follow."

"But you know what's happening around here," Scott argued. "It's not safe for them–"

"This may actually be the safest place for them in Beacon Hills," Stilinski interjected, his voice rising in exasperation. "At least I can protect them in here."

"Would Stiles think that?" Lydia shot back, Stilinski's attention falling on her almost immediately after the words left her mouth.

"Especially if one of your deputies is working for Gerard," Malia added.

"I'm not buying that."

"That's bullshit," I found myself snapping back before I could hold my tongue. He raised his eyebrows at my sudden outburst, but I couldn't stop myself. "There's people all over this town that want us dead," I continued venomously. "So that probably doesn't exclude your precious damn deputies."

"I know these deputies like the back of my hand," he responded, whilst a hand fell on my shoulder. I glanced up to look at Scott, but he was concentrating on listening carefully. "I know their families, their kids, their brothers, sisters. I know who they are. And I trust them."

"You know who they were," Liam countered. "There's something out there, everyone's afraid and it's getting worse."

"You can't protect two werewolves from hunters if they're already on the inside," Scott continued, as Sheriff Stilinski looked between us all in bemusement for a moment. Eventually, he glanced behind us, directing his attention to the werewolf, Quinn, who had been sat silently.

She'd come to the house, scaring the shit out of Liam and I when she stumbled through the door all of a sudden, looking for my brother. Scott, Malia and Lydia returned home minutes after she'd turned up, practically interrogating her about what had happened – which was how we'd ended up here.

"It's Quinn, right?" The brunette girl nodded in response. "And you're sure it's a deputy who shot you? Absolutely one hundred percent sure?"

She nodded her head again, her eyes flickering down to the floor as she seemed to recall back to what had happened. "I saw flashing lights. A police car. A badge. A gun. And then they shot me," she stated, lifting her head. "They shot me in the head. That's all I remember."

Sheriff Stilinski sighed, his palms resting back on the desk again. "There's a couple holes in her story."

"Maybe because there's a hole in her head," Lydia countered sarcastically.

The comment caused Malia to burst into laughter, eventually stopping when she realised nobody else was, instead we were all watching her. I felt my lips tug into a slight smile, as I quickly tried to push away my own desire to laugh. "I'm sorry."