We need waffle mix and whipped cream and maple syrup and powdered sugar and... Penelope recited the grocery list in her head as she drove her dad's truck into town.

That morning her dad had surprised her with a top-of-the-line waffle iron for their cabin so they could have waffles for breakfast whenever they wanted without having to venture into town. Unfortunately, when he'd made the purchase, he hadn't actually thought to get any of the things they'd need to actually make said waffles.

Not even waffle mix.

But Penelope was happy to do an early morning run into town to get supplies. It was her turn, anyway; her dad had been doing their supply runs for the entire time they had been in Ridgestone. Besides, there were a few things she wanted to pick up from the tech store before her interview with Henry this afternoon.

As she turned onto the main street, her mental grocery list was pushed aside to make way for all the things she still had to do for the interview. She needed to get some kind of microphone, a tripod, maybe even a laptop... She wasn't sure if Henry would want his face in the video or if she'd have to blur his face, crime documentary style. She'd need a laptop for that, and at the very least, a laptop would make it easier to edit these videos.

She still couldn't quite believe that Henry had agreed to the interview. It was nice that he trusted her, but she had a feeling that spite was his bigger motivator. Either way, Penelope wasn't going to question it too much. If Henry's wanted to share his story, great. If Henry wanted to share his story with her, even better. She didn't care if his primary motivation was to screw over Gunnar.

Just as she thought of the town's mayor, Penelope spotted him. He was standing on the median in the centre of the street, beneath the shadow of the relocated Raven statue. Despite the early hour, there was a crowd of gathered people circled around him.

Speak of the devil and he will appear, Penelope thought as she pulled into a spot right in front of the grocery store.

From this new angle, she could see why there was a crowd. Xander Green was there, film crew and Daevon right alongside him, filming a scene. Xander was in frame and looked like he was interviewing the mayor. After a moment, Penelope heard someone call "CUT!" and the crowd around them broke into applause. The mayor was beaming as he revelled in the praise, doing a series of over-the-top bows.

After all, she had learned about him yesterday, Penelope couldn't help but scowl in his direction as she hopped out of the truck.

As if he could feel the prick of her piercing gaze, the mayor turned. He spotted her and raised his arm to give her a nice big wave. He smiled, too, as if to say, This could've been you getting all this praise and attention.

Penelope gave him a sarcastic smile right back. Jerk.

The mayor's diverted attention caught the notice of Daevon. He turned and saw her, too—

"Shit," Penelope muttered under her breath as she spun around, pulling up her hood. She didn't need Daevon to see her. If he did, he'd inevitably come over and try to talk to her and that's the last thing she wanted.

She hurried into the grocery store, out of sight, hoping that Daevon was too busy with whatever they were filming to follow her. Even then, she needed to be quick and get out of here before he got a break. Inside the store, she grabbed the nearest basket and scanned the signs over the aisles as her list returned to her head. Waffle mix and whipped cream and maple syrup and powdered sugar and...

She spotted the right aisle and dove down it. Shovelling three boxes of buttermilk pancake & waffle mix into the basket, she quickly moved onto the syrup shelf next.

"There you are."

Penelope's shoulders slumped and she abandoned the bottle of syrup she had just picked up. She had hoped she'd have more time.

She turned to face the end of the aisle.

There was Daevon, staring her down. Penelope stared back, studying him. He was wearing a hoodie and joggers, a matching set from an expensive brand. He still carried that undeserved swagger, but she could tell that it was a little more forced than usual. She could tell that her presence in Ridgestone here had thrown him off, just a little.

She smirked. Good.

But he seemed to take her smile as an invitation to come closer. He strode down the aisle towards her as Penelope shrunk back against the shelves of syrup. She thought briefly of turning and running the other way, but chose to stand her ground—she didn't want him to think she was afraid of him or something.

Daevon stopped just in front of her. "I've been trying to reach you," he said, keeping his voice low. "Did you block me or something?"

"No," Penelope said, trying her best to seem indifferent. "I changed my number."

"You changed your number?" Daevon echoed, his eyebrows disappearing beneath his bleach-blond bangs. "That's a little extreme, don't you think?"

"Not really," Penelope said. "I did it to get your fans off my back." She didn't think there was any need to mention the angrily-throwing-her-phone-into-the-lake incident.

"My fans? They're your fans, too," Daevon said.

"Oh, are they? I thought you were going to take them."

Daevon sighed. "Okay, look, I didn't mean, that," he said, rubbing his fingers into his forehead. "I was just frustrated. I'm sorry, okay? I want to talk. Can't we just talk?"

"There's nothing left to talk about," Penelope said, turning away. She focussed again on the selection of syrup like this was an ordinary shopping trip that didn't involve her arguing in public with her Internet-famous ex.

All of Daevon's puffed-up bravado seemed to deflate, giving her a small glimpse of the Daevon that she used to know. "So we're really doing this? You're really going to break up with me?" he said in a small voice.

"Going to?" The shock of it made Penelope give a single shrill laugh that made everyone turn in their direction. "We're are broken up. We are past tense in every possible way. So you can go." She shooed him with a wave of her hand.

Daevon's demeanour shifted then. He stood straighter, looming over her. Gone was his pleading, but so was his inflated ego. Now it was just his hard, grey-blue eyes, boring into her. His eyes weren't guarded, like Liam's. Daevon's hard stare was just cold, like ice.

"What are you doing here, Penelope?" he asked.

"I should be asking you the same thing," Penelope snapped.

"I'm here working," Daevon said. "Obviously. What reason do you have to be in Ridgestone?"

The way he said it... It was an accusation like this was some kind of cryptozoological turf war.

Penelope narrowed her eyes at him. Does he seriously think I'm copying him or something? The heat of her anger was back. "I was here first, thank you very much. I posted a video about the town before you even got here."

Daevon just continued to stare at her with those icy eyes. He didn't look convinced.

"What, you don't believe me? Haven't you checked my channel? Or have you, gasp, unfollowed me?" Penelope put her hand to her face in a mock look of shock, like being unfollowed was the worst thing he could do to her.

"No. I've just been busy," Daevon said, looking away.

"Oh, yeah, I can see that," Penelope retorted, nodding up the aisle, to the big store windows where she could just barely see Xander and the Mayor still standing around at the foot of the Raven statue. "Really, Daevon? You're working with Xander Green?"

"Why not Xander Green?" Daevon shot back. "Just because you were too high and mighty for his offer doesn't mean I'm going to turn down the opportunity."

Penelope's eyes widened. So, Xander had made him an offer. She wondered if he had gone directly to Daevon after she had turned him down... And if he had anything to do with Daevon's decision to suddenly reveal all of his secrets.

"Y'know, I was going to offer you a chance to get in on our new special, as a way to make it up to you so you could restore your reputation. But if you're too good for it, then nevermind," Daevon continued. "Besides, I can see you've already moved on."

"Moved on?" Penelope said. "What the hell are you talking about?"

"That guy you were with at the campsite. You looked pretty friendly to me. Sure didn't take you long."

"I'm not with Liam!" Penelope snapped, but her face felt hot all of a sudden—and not because of anger. "He's just helping me dig myself out of the hole you dumped me in."

"Yeah, sure," Daevon said, but there was something wounded beneath his hard shell. "Good luck with that. But I don't think anyone is going to care about your little evidence when they see what we've got in store." And with that, he turned and headed out the way he came.

Penelope waited until he was out of sight before she let the smile spread across her face. He was welcome to underestimate her. She didn't care. She knew he'd soon be kicking himself when he saw that she got the one thing they couldn't.

Henry.