Braedan was in the loft with Peter, Derek and me. I, of course, sat on the spiral staircase, leaning against the railing. Derek and Peter sat on the couch, a table in front of them. Braedan sat in a chair on the other side of the table.

Peter was hiring her to find Kate. And to find the $117 million someone stole from the vault.

Yeah, you read that right.

Braedan propped her feet up on the table.

"That table's Italian," Peter told her.

"So are these boots," Braedan said. "Are we gonna talk interior designing or are we going to talk numbers?"

Peter sighed, leaning forward. Derek was looking at his reflection in his sunglass lenses. Peter wrote a price, putting the pen down, sliding it over to Braedan.

Braedan took the paper, wrote down a new price, sliding it back over to Peter.

Peter turned the paper so he could read the price, looking up. "We're hiring you to find Kate, not assassinate the President."

"I was hired by the Calaveras to find Kate," Braedan replied. "You're hiring me to find her first. Going against the Calaveras is what's going to cost you."

Peter exhaled, writing down a new price, sliding it to Braedan.

Braedan didn't even look at the new price before she slid it back over to Peter.

Peter scoffed, standing up, walking toward me on the spiral staircase.

Derek took the paper, ripping it in half, looking at Braedan. "We'll pay. Just find Kate. That's all we want."

Braedan walked out of the door, Peter sliding it shut behind her.

Peter turned to us angrily. "Are you insane?"

Derek was facing away, leaning against the table.

I stood up, getting a little annoyed. "We didn't have a choice. We spent a week looking for her and came up with nothing."

"If we don't find out who told Kate about the vault, we don't get those bonds," Peter said, walking closer to us. "What do you think I'm gonna do then, huh? Get a job? My resume is slightly out of date." I rolled my eyes with a quiet sigh, turning to look out of the window. "We got robbed, Tara. Robbed!" I looked at him over my shoulder as he stood behind Derek. "Derek, why aren't you saying anything?!"

As Peter grabbed Derek's shoulder, Derek turned around angrily, shifted, grabbing Peter's wrist as he growled.

"Oh, that's a new look for you," Peter said. Derek let him go. "What happened to your eyes?"

"I don't know," Derek said. "But I'm willing to pay to find out."

*

I wasn't staying at the loft. I was going to find a strong enough lead to follow Kate on.

The one place we hadn't checked?

The Hale vault itself.

I saw Stiles, Kira and Scott walking outside, heard them talking about an ax murderer and how Stiles wanted to use it as an excuse to get out of school. Both Kira and Stiles walked away.

While everyone was starting to go to class, I stood at the Beacon Hills High School sign, making sure no one was was watching.

But I sensed Scott behind me. "Yes?"

"The only time you ever come to this place is when it has nothing to do with school or class," Scott told me, seeming a little hectic.

I turned to face him. "If you're asking why I'm here now, the answer is simple. I'm tired of being around Peter when he's whining about the $117 million stolen every five seconds, and tired of being about Derek when all he can think about is how or why his eyes changed. That, and I'm trying to catch Kate's scent so I can figure it out. And the only place we haven't been to is this vault." There was a beat of silence. "So, I heard about the family-murdering ax murder."

"Yeah," Scott said, looking behind him toward the direction he'd talked with the others.

"Why are you all frantic?" I asked.

Scott looked back at me. "Oh, uh, lacrosse tryouts are today, and I'm getting a little amped. Hey, can you try to look for Kate later? After tryouts? I'll help you if you want. Do you mind waiting? It won't be that long."

I exhaled. Scott tilted his head at me with a serious look. "You're gonna help me even if I say no, aren't you?"

"Yes, I am."

"Sure."

"Great. See you then."

It happened so fast.

Scott gave me a chaste little kiss before I could do anything, already turning and walking for the the school, going to class.

*

I stood still, too surprised to move for a second, blinking as the bell rang. I looked to the side. I opened my mouth, taking a breath, but then let it close.

I could hear Scott inside, like he had just realized what he'd just done. "Oh, God."

What just happened?

*

I was sitting on the stairs in the school hall, outside the boys' locker room.

I could hear Scott and Stiles.

"It was our first kiss since our actual first kiss," Scott told him.

"That's good . . . sort of," Stiles said. "You kissed her. She let you kiss her, which for incredibly rejective Tara Hale would never have done that."

"I did, and she did. But we didn't."

"Was . . .was it on the lips?"

"Yeah."

"What there tongue?"

Oh, God, Stiles, seriously? I said, my hands going to my head, my phone in one of them.

"No," Scott answered. "I .  . . It was like how you kiss your grandmother when your five."

"Oh, chaste," Stiles said. "You gave her a chaste kiss."

"Yeah, and now it's . . . it's all weird. It's all completely weird and I . . . I don't know what to do. I mean, I don't know if she's mad, or as weirded out as I am, or if I pushed her away again . . .Maybe I should text her."

I lowered my hand with the phone to look at it.

"No," Stiles said. "Just no with the texts."

When I heard Finstock blow his whistle, I tuned out.

I sat back because I was actually thinking . . .

That I really had changed my mind while being with the Calaveras. And what Braedan had said in The Church . . . I wasn't going to push it away anymore, because I literally could die anytime. And I didn't want to regret for not doing anything.

So, was it bad I actually liked it?

Or was it even worse that I wanted more?

*

Scott jogged toward me in the hall after tryouts. "Sorry about that. We're taking Liam to the hospital. It might be a sprain, it could be a break."

"It's okay," I told him. "I get it. I'll find Kate myself."

"No, no, no, can you wait to find Kate until you have some help?" Scott asked. "Please? It'd . . ."

"Make you feel better?" I finished.

Scott sighed, nodding. "Yeah. Promise me you'll wait."

I sighed, looking up and tilting my head, saying the words slowly. "I promise you I'll wait."

Scott blinked in surprise. "Wow. Uh, that was easy."

"Did you think I'd be difficult?" I asked in amusement.

"You're, uh . . . you're always sort of difficult," Scott told me. "No offense."

I shook my head. "I know I can be difficult sometimes." Scott tilted his head, making me correct myself. "Most of the time."

"And I'm sorry about before. Before before? When I did that thing outside by the vault?"

"You mean when you gave me a chaste kiss?"

Scott exhaled, looking embarrassed. "You heard me and Stiles in the locker room."

"Yeah," I answered. "I did."

Scott started to turn around, then stopped, turning back to me. "What you said about changing your mind and . . . and you being done with pushing this away . . .Did you mean it?"

I nodded. "Yeah. I did. I meant it. You're not pushing me away. I'm not pushing you away. Not anymore."

"Well . . ." Scott trailed off. "Really?" I smiled a small smile, nodding. "But . . . I really am sorry."

This time when Scott turned around, he walked away and he went into the boys' locker room. He didn't stop.

I sighed, looking down, actually feeling a little disappointed.

After hesitating, I slowly pushed up from the stairs, slowly starting to walk toward the doors at the end of the hall. I was walking a lot slower than my normal pace. As if I was waiting for something to stop me without even realizing it.

The door opening down the hall did make me stop, Scott walking out and walking toward me. "You know what? I'm not sorry."

I started to walk closer to him with a smile, Scott's hands on my waist as he kissed me like he wanted nothing else in the world to happen.

And, even though when I had gotten close to him before, it felt like a World War ||| raging on, my mind fighting against body, soul and heart . . .

This was actually the first ever moment that it was like the war just stopped. In surrender.

So it was a surprise to us both that I kissed him the way he was kissing me, like I wanted nothing else in the world to happen.

Because, at the moment, I didn't.

Scott held me even closer as my arm rested on his shoulders, around his neck, one hand on his head

After we pulled away, both of us smiling real, actual smiles, I felt the best I had in.  .  .forever.

"So no more pushing this away?" Scott asked softly, a little breathless, smiling.

I smiler a little wider, shaking my head. "Definitely no more pushing this away."

"Just had to make sure," Scott said.

This time, surprising us even further, I kissed him first.

After a few seconds longer, I let go, Scott letting go to let me step back.

Scott jogged down the hall to the door. He stopped, looking at me with a smile before going inside. 

I still had the smile, slowly letting it fade, but not completely, as I started to walk for the doors at the end of the hall, walking faster than I had before, at my normal pace.

The strangest thing that surprised me most of all was the fact that I was undeniably happy with what just happened, no part of me in denial or angry or trying to push it away.

What happened to me before, with the Calaveras, with what Braedan said in The Church . . .it really had changed everything for me.

Not me me, but the way things were with Scott.

And, honestly, I was glad it did.