Simple Joys | Hale [7.5] OPEN

New Eyes

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Stella groans, her head pounding. Her body feels stiff and broken. She knows she is seated in some chair, the metal biting into her back. The air around her is so cold, it's hot.

Her hands are tied behind her back with ropes soaked in some liquid. From the smell, the fourteen-year-old recognizes it as wolfsbane. But she's not a werewolf— it doesn't hurt her.

"Stella," someone hisses. She rolls her head to the side, her eyes fighting to open. "Stella, be quiet."

"T?" she breathes, finally willing her eyes to open.

At first, everything is blurry. Then, her eyes focus on the person beside her. Teddy sits in his own metal chair, hands behind his back. Redness covers his wrists. He has a split lip and a slowly healing black eye. "Stella," he snaps, flashing his yellow eyes. "Close your eyes."

Stella's heart begins to race. She shuts her eyes, trying to seem naturally unconscious. She hears someone walk in.

"Leave her alone," Teddy snarls, his voice filled with rage.

The footsteps ignore the wolf and pause right before Stella. Her eyes fly open as someone grabs her cheeks. She spits in their face.

The hunter jerks back with a scoff. "Feisty," she says. "Perfect."

"Who are you?" Teddy demands. He's been told what to do in these situations. What to do when a hunter gets you.

"You don't know me," the hunter says, looking Stella up and down. The witch shifts uncomfortably but keeps her glare strong. "Your mother knew my uncle though. She killed him."

"My mom's killed a lot of hunters," Teddy says. "Your uncle may not have been that special."

By the rise in the hunter's heartbeat, Teddy can tell that she is furious. But she controls it. "You two are gonna help me with something," she states.

"Like hell," Stella snaps. "I'm really gonna enjoy what my mom does to you."

The hunter grins. "I'm gonna enjoy killing her."

Teddy snorts. The hunter glares at him. "You can't kill my mom. And even if by some miracle you do manage to kill the Original Alpha who has escaped hunters like you for the past thousand years, every single pack in the world will come after you for her death. It's suicide."

"Not if I'm not the one slitting her throat." The girl takes out her phone and shows the Hales a live video feed. An Alpha werewolf, fully shifted, paces in a small cell. He is crazed and bloodthirsty. "He's gonna kill her. I just get to watch."

Teddy glares at the woman. Stella is petrified.

The woman claps her hands. "Now, which one of you is going to unlock your phone so I can call Mommy dearest?"

Both stay silent.

The hunter clicks her tongue. "We can do this the hard way then." She walks over to a large generator. It is only then that Stella sees the wires connecting the chairs to the generator. "Learned this from Araya Calavera before I killed her. She thought I was crazy."

"You are crazy," Teddy snaps.

The hunter only laughs. "Either you can unlock your phone, or one of you is going to get hit with some electricity." As the woman gets more excited, a soft Italian accent emerges. "And, I recommend you give me the code, Teddy, because only one of you can heal."

"Don't do it," Stella begs, looking over at her brother. "I can handle it, don't give it to her."

Teddy glances at Stella. He opens his mouth, but the hunter cuts him off.