ALL FOR US | isaac lahey [SLOW UPDATES]

chapter zero, prologue.

❨ ∘ chapter zero,          prologue. ∘ ❩

HOWARD JONES SIGHED DEEPLY AS HE STARED AT DEREK, HIS BROWS FURROWED IN DEEP THOUGHT. His wife, Rachel, was standing by the fireplace, arms crossed tightly across her chest and lips pursed, the worry she felt practically radiating off her body. Derek scrunched his nose up subtly, the stench was pungent. Tension filled the room, the silence was almost deafening. The newly turned alpha cleared his throat, breaking the silence between the three. "Where is she right now?" Derek asked, hands tightly clasped together in front of him. He was clearly referring to the couple's only child, Mirabel. As he waited for one of them to answer him, he allowed his eyes to wander around the living room, his emerald eyes bouncing off each frame as he took in the pictures within. One, in particular, had caught his attention. Almost as if he were in a trance, his feet guided him closer and his hand outstretched, fingers holding the frame almost delicately as if he were afraid the simplest amount of pressure would cause it to break.

It was a picture of his mother, her smiling face staring back at him. Derek felt his chest tighten at the sight, a large lump slowing making its way up to his throat. It had been years since he saw his mother's smile, he had forgotten what it looked like. He had forgotten how when she would smile, the corners of her eyes would crinkle, the small wrinkles around her eyes becoming more noticeable. He had forgotten the way her nose would scrunch up slightly when she was upset, a small frown following close behind. Derek Hale was forgetting his mother and he knew, that in time, he would slowly start to forget his sister too. The harsh reality was that Derek was forgetting his family, and there wasn't anything he could do to stop it.

In the photo, Talia had been carrying a newborn Mirabel, holding her tightly to her chest. Beside her sat a much younger Derek, his green eyes wide in awe of the baby in his mother's arms. Clearing his throat once again, Derek's eyes lingered on his mother's face before putting the picture back in its place, turning his head towards the couple. "Howard, where's Mirabel?"

Howie sighed and looked at his feet, hand rubbing over the top of his head stressfully. "I don't know." He lied, completely aware of the fact that Derek heard his heart skip a beat. "She didn't tell me where she was going." Derek gave the dark-skinned man a knowing look, a dark brow raised.

"We both know that's a lie."

The two men stared each other down, neither backing down as their faces hardened. Rolling her whiskey-colored eyes, Rachel stepped forward and placed a gentle hand on her husband's arm. "Howard, he's right." Howard's head snapped in his wife's direction, eyes softening at the worried look that was clear across her face. "Maybe she'd be safer if she was part of his pack."

Howie made a noise that was between a scoff and a laugh, looking at his wife in disbelief. "Rachel . . ." He started to protest, but she quickly cut him off.