I arrived home that night at about eleven. Rain beating down on the front porch.

I open the front door and walk inside, stress pulsing through my veins.

"Mum?" I call through the house. "Mum I'm home!"

I drop my bags by the foot of the door and lock it.

As I kneel down, fishing through my bag for my wallet and jacket, I feel something sharp on the floor.

With the dim light- it was hard to know what it was. Without hesitation, I put it on my jumper and folded it up.

"Mum?" I call again.

I slowly walk up the stairs.

I turn around and open my bedroom door without looking at anything, placing my phone down on the bed and walking across the hallway and into my mothers room, knocking softly.

"Mother?" I silently say, flicking on the light and shielding my eyes from the sudden brightness.

I step back, my lips trembling and my voice hitched in my throat.

Inside the large room lies my mother, knocked in conscious on the floor.

I kneel down beside her, shaking her shoulders.

"Mum! Mum! mum wake up!" I say, unaware of the tears streaking down my face.

I get up, sprinting to my bedroom and turning on the light- reaching for my phone on the bed.

Before I can grasp it, I see it.

The papers covering every inch of floor.

Lists and lists of names.

So much paper.
I squeeze my eyes shut, picking up my phone and running back to my mother.

"911, my mothers been hurt"

•••

Within ten minutes loud thumping comes from my front door. I open the door and paramedics flood through.

I stand by the door, shaking violently.

"Miss.Argent?" A familiar yet unfamiliar voice says. A hand placed on my shoulder.

"Yes" I reply, looking the man in his eyes.

I don't know how I recognise this young deputy's face but I do. I know it from somewhere.

"I'm going to need to know exactly what had happened" he says.

I try to answer- my voice trying hard to squirm out but stuck deep down in my body.

"I just- hadn't been home all night. Something must have happened." I say. Shaking my head. Tears flood down my face.

Something must have happened to my mother- and I was worried sick.

The night had been stressful enough. Finding a cure for the weird virus and finding Mr.McCall to tell Scott about the wild Raishis. Now something had happened to mum.

A bed gets wheeled out with my mother on it. I push past the deputy and follow the bed. I follow it into the car, taking a seat beside her. Clutching my jacket and my mobile.

This can't be happening.

I cry harder, looking at her. My phone starts ringing and I check who it is. Relief flooding through me when I see that it's Chris.

I'm not alone.

I answer the phone.

"Christopher. Oh god. Something horrible has happened" I cry into the phone.

"Just hold on- I'll meet you at the hospital" he says.

I close my eyes. Taking a deep breath and calming my heartbeat.

It's okay mum...you're gonna be fine.

It's all gonna be okay.

I take my jumper from beside me and shake the dust from it. Readying to put it on.

Just as I do- a small brown object flys out of the jacket.

I kneel down in the small space provided and pick it up- observing it.

This must have been the object I had found by my bag when I first entered the house.

I look at it and a few more tears squeeze out.

Inside the palms of my hands is the claw of a were jaguar.

I clench my fists. How could I have not known?

Kate knew we were out to get her! Why not send a warning for us to stay away?

I glare at the nail, Knowing that at least my mother had the strength to fight back.

The ambulance stops and the door is opened. I step aside and let the paramedics wheel my mother out. With me following by.

I follow them into the hospital where they take her into a room and tell me I cannot go in.

I sit down outside, anxiously waiting for Chris.

Every minute goes by like an hour.

I try my best to stay positive but everything seems screwed.

Even the thought of being back in this hospital, after watching two people die in this very building.

One, the assassins victim and two, the assassin.

I hear the footsteps scuttle around the corner and I straight away know that it is Christopher.

I stand up, as he envelopes me in a big hug. I cry into his chest for a while. Finding closure in his warmth and love. He sits down beside me.

"It was Kate!" I say, flustered and stressed. I retrieve the nail and hold it into his face. He looks at it.

"Where did you get this?" He asks.

"By the foot of the door." I reply. He nods, speculating.

"She's going to be alright" he says.

I look at him with cold eyes.

"How many people? How many people Chris? How many am I going to watch die? Watch be put in hospital?" I close my eyes, hanging my head back. "I don't know if I can do this anymore. It's not long before..." I say.

He looks at me with his piercing blue eyes.

"Before what?"

"Before I crack." I say slowly, wiping the tears from my face.
He cups my chin.
"Listen here," Chris says with a strong voice. "You are very strong. And so is your mother. If she's in there, with god knows what wrong with her- you need to take that strength and use it. Whatever happened back in the house with Kate is over. OVER. You let it go. Focus on your mother. Focus on your friends. Focus on Liam. Anything!"

I shake my head.
"I'm not strong Chris- but I'll do whatever I have to do to try and be strong. For mom"

He let's go of my face and sits straighter.

And for a while we just sit in silence. I try not to let my mind wander much but certain things cross my mind. The paper spread across my bedroom floor was one of those things, another thing I kept thinking about was Chris.

Gone so far into his life just to have everything taken from him. His brother, his wife, his father, his daughter. And the way he spoke about strength was like he hadn't had a fibre of strength in his body.

But my uncle- he was stronger than anyone I knew. His strength was one of the only reasons he still had humanity.

The clock had long since marked midnight when the nurse came out of the room.
"She's awake" the nurse says.
Chris and I both spring up, dashing into the room to see her.

As soon as I set eyes on my mother a huge smile spreads across my face.
I sit down beside her- taking one of her hands in my own.

"Hi" I say, smiling.
She brushes a finger against my cheek.
"Have you been crying? Love?" She says, her voice calming me.
I lightly laugh.
"Yeah mom, you got me worried sick"

She smiles.
"Well I'm okay now. I just had a bit of a run in..." Her voice quietens.
"With who? Tell us what happened Liz" Chris says.
She looks to Chis.
"Kate and one of her berserkers came in. I think they were looking for Jo. I stuck my gun up at Kate. You know, readying for a badass fight when she just walked away. Stupid me- because I let my guard down as she left. Didn't have time to duck from a berserker. Knocked me down"
I sit straighter.
"Did they say anything? Anything?" I ask.
My mother sat up, drinking a glass of water.
She took her last gulps and looked me in the eye.
"She said she needed help. That she had done something to someone and didn't know who. Something vague like that"
"Anything else?" Chris asks.
Mum reaches into her jean pocket and pulls out a scrunched piece of paper. When she unfolds it I see a list of names. One of the names highlighted with a yellow marker.

It's the same list that was flooding my bedroom.

"All she did was point out this name. But god knows who this girl is- or where we can find her"

She points to a name on the list and I read it.

My mouth hangs open.

"I do! I know exactly where to find her!" I say.

Yes, I know exactly where to find Veronica Parrish .