Josie stood nervously with the other contestants waiting for their last minute instructions for that night. Her mind was spinning with a million anxious thoughts. Her date was gone, Penelope had lied - and was still lying - to her about more than one thing, and the hours between then and the moment she’d have to face the entire crowd and all the judges were slowly shrinking. She didn’t want to admit it, but maybe Penelope was right. Maybe she should just drop out. 

“Hi.”

Josie whipped around, heart racing in her chest. Hope just grinned at her surprise, like it made her happy to see terror in other people’s eyes. 

“Who do you think is going to cry first when they lose?” Hope asked devilishly, eyeing the competition. 

Josie turned away from Hope silently. She wasn’t going to entertain this - whatever this was.

Before Hope could say anything else to antagonize her more, she spotted the tall blonde headed their way. The air changed as soon as Lizzie arrived.

“I sense some tension,” Hope said, motioning between the two twins.

Lizzie ignored her comment. “I need to talk to you.” 

“I’m kind of busy with a pageant, Lizzie.” Hope looked around like the scene around her was somehow only visible to her. 

“Hope, please.” 

“That doesn’t work on me anymore.” Hope stared back at Lizzie evenly. A day ago, maybe it would’ve made something in her chest ache. Maybe Lizzie’s soft voice would’ve swayed her. But not today. Today, she was free. 

Josie glanced between the two of them. “What’s going on?”

“I need to talk to Hope. It’s important,” Lizzie tried again.

“Oh my god, Lizzie,” Hope announced loudly enough for everyone in the room. “I will not have sex with you again!” 

Lizzie’s cheeks burned. She balled her hands into fists at her side. She announced back at the same volume, “Not everyone wants to sleep with you, Hope!” 

She didn’t wait around for Hope’s response. She was too embarrassed to stick around in the room full of people staring at them. The plan was to disappear into her room, lock the door, and not come out until the pageant was over and everyone had gone home. And that’s probably what would’ve happened too, if she hadn’t overheard her father’s voice at the end of the hallway. 

She slowed down, sticking close to the wall and listening. 

“We need a plan,” Alaric was saying. “And preferably one that doesn’t involve you or any other student.”

Lizzie furrowed her eyebrows and leaned closer.

“You’re gonna need our help, whether you admit it or not.” Kaleb crossed his arms and stared at his old headmaster evenly. “You’re human; Hope’s a tribrid. You need some vamp power to even it out.”

”I don’t need vamp power when I can de-power her myself,” Alaric argued. 

“Then why didn’t you de-power her before?”

“Because I -” Alaric sighed. There was no getting around it. It had become painfully clear to everyone, including himself. “Because I made a mistake. I thought she could be saved, so I wanted a way to stop her without killing her. I made that my priority instead of the innocent lives in danger. But after last night …”

Lizzie stepped around the corner. “What happened last night?”

Her father jumped at her suddenly announcing her presence. “Lizzie -”

“What. Happened. Last. Night?” Lizzie asked again. She was close to tears before, but now they hung in the corners of her eyes, just waiting for the chance to fall from her fearful eyes.

“Hope killed a bunch of people at the Old Mill - a bunch of students,” Kaleb said before Alaric could decide to turn her away without an answer.

Lizzie nodded. It all made a little too much sense. The reason Hope was so distant today. The reason Lizzie didn’t have the effect on her that she usually did. She’d done the one thing Lizzie was afraid she might - she jammed the switch back in the other direction. 

“I want to help.” Lizzie nodded and planted her feet. “I can siphon her and weaken her so that a vampire could overpower her.”

Alaric was on the verge of rejecting her already, but Kaleb spoke up, “We could really use a siphoner.”

“We only get one shot at this,” Lizzie reminded him. 

“Fine.” He was less than pleased to be including his very-human daughter in this, but it was beginning to look like he didn’t have a choice. 

In fact, it was beginning to look like none of them had a choice.