𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐡𝐨𝐫, m. tate & i. lahey

𝟎𝟏𝟖. practice

ANCHOR

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"THE DREAD DOCTORS by T.R. McCammon," Lydia reads, suddenly pausing and staring at it when Allison and Malia push the school doors open for her.

"What?" Malia asks, almost running into the banshee's back.

Lydia starts walking again. "I don't know. There's just something about it. Has anyone actually read it yet?"

"Just me, and I didn't understand any of it."

"We should probably all read it," Lydia suggests.

"Kira's working on that— she's printing copies in the library," Malia informs her friends as they approach her locker. The werecoyote unlatches the door and hangs her backpack inside. "Stiles says he can't find anything on the author."

"Probably means it's a pen name," Allison states, shrugging slightly.

Lydia reads out the description from the backside of the novel. "In a small New England town, teenagers are taken in the night and buried alive. Days later, they emerge transformed, wreaking havoc and spreading terror, commanded by an ancient order of parascientists only known as The Dread Doctors..."—she thinks for a moment—"Sounds vaguely familiar. How does it end?"

"It doesn't. This is supposed to be volume one."

"Oh, let me guess," Lydia sighs. "There is no volume two."

"I think we're living volume two."

The strawberry blonde purses her lips. "Then maybe the real question is... Is this a novel, or someone's prediction?"

____________

Malia sits in the library as she annotates and rereads the novel again, a yellow highlighter in hand. Everybody else decided to accompany Lydia and Stiles to Eichen House to talk to Valack — who Lydia had mentioned to Malia earlier in the day — leaving the werecoyote alone with a book she cannot understand.

However, another body slides into the seat across the small table, causing Malia's eyes to drift from the packet. She meets the eyes of Theo.

"Page turner?"

The girl glances down before looking back up at him. "Not exactly."

"Neither is this," he says, holding up a pre-calculus textbook.

Theo places the book down on the table and opens it, starting to skim through it. Malia decides to let him stay, though once in a while she catches herself staring at him out of curiosity.

After another hour of reading, Malia stands from her seat, swiping the papers off the table and sliding them into her backpack. The werewolf looks up from the pre-calculus book and watches her intently.

"Need a ride?"

She doesn't hesitate to decline his offer. "I can take the bus."

"The last one left an hour ago," he says while a playful smirk tugs at his lips.

"I'll walk."

Theo rests his arm against the railing beside him. "Haven't I seen you coming out of Driver's Ed?"

A rush of embarrassment goes through Malia, and she shrugs as she pulls the straps of her bag over her shoulders. "I hope not."

"I'm pretty sure I saw you destroy a couple traffic cones the other day— and nearly take out a sophomore," the boy shares in a matter-of-fact tone.

"The sophomore shouldn't have been standing there."

Theo makes a sound between a scoff and a chuckle, reaching into his jacket pocket and digging for something. "Sounds like you could, uh, still use some practice?"

He tosses his keys through the air. Malia's hand flies up on instinct, and the keys jingle as they land in her palm. A grin forms on Theo's face, and Malia allows herself a small smile.

____________

"We can go a little faster," Theo tells the girl in the driver's seat. "If you want."

Malia narrows her eyes, checking the speed meter. "I'm going the speed limit," she glances at him and then the road.

The werewolf shakes his head. "Nobody does the speed limit, and you also don't have to hold the wheel like that." He lets out a small sigh and leans closer to the girl. "Put your hand..."

Theo slowly places his palm over Malia's knuckles, guiding her hand down the steering wheel and placing it lower. The brunette has to find all the control in her body not to shift in her seat uncomfortably.

When he finally sits back, Theo smiles at her. "Better?"

Malia decides to ignore his question, simply turning her attention toward the dark road ahead of them. However, her hands move to the top of the wheel as she continues driving. The engine starts to ring in her ears, and everything around Malia begins to dissolve and change into another setting.

Suddenly she's in the backseat of a car, and a seemingly familiar woman is in the driver's seat. Malia looks to her left, a gut twisting feeling coursing through her when she sees her younger sister beside her. Her sister is playing with the baby doll.

"Malia, you okay?" The werecoyote can hear Theo's voice echoing in the background, repeatedly telling her to slow down and stop the car. Malia can feel herself jerk the car and press down harder on the gas pedal. The engine revs.

"Malia, stop the car!"

She slams both of her heels on the breaks— the vehicle comes to an abrupt halt as both teenagers lunge forward, their heads barely missing the dashboard. Malia opens the door as quickly as possible, stumbling out of the truck and into the street.

Malia falls to her knees, staring straight ahead with wide eyes. Her chest heaves, lip trembling as another blurry image starts to shake form in front of her.

Her mother keeps driving, but through the windshield, she sees a figure standing in the road— a woman. As they get closer, the woman raises her arms, a pistol held in each hand. Malia's mother gasps just before she fires the first shot, and the youngest girl in the car hugs her doll close to her chest as they all scream in horror. The bullets pierce the windows, some of them shooting straight through the glass. However, their mother swerved to the right to avoid the woman, and they recklessly drive into the woods.

"Malia, come on. Get up."

Headlights shine into the girl's eyes, and then she's back on the highway with Theo. He's gripping her shoulder tightly, desperately trying to get her to move on her own before the lights meet them.

"Malia, come on, we gotta get up—" The truck is less than fifteen feet from the pair. "Come on!"

Theo hurriedly wraps his arms around her body, yanking her off her knees and out of the way of the oncoming vehicle. They land in front of his car, Malia's spine colliding with Theo's chest as both of them breath heavily.

The person honks their horn as they pass the teenagers.

"It was her..."

"What?" Theo breathes into her ear, evidently confused.

"It was her— she... she was there."

The boy furrows his eyebrows. "Who?"

Malia twists her neck to look at him, hesitating for a few moments. Although she's unsure whether or not he'll believe her, Malia somehow finds the courage to utter the three words.

"The Desert Wolf."