CHAPTER ONE / Radio Silence

✶

It takes Nova Hale an entire month before she notices that her cousin, Derek, is missing.

There are two things you need to know about Derek Hale before you judge her: 1) Derek leaves all the time. This isn't new. However, he usually isn't gone this long—no more than a week at the longest, and if he is going to be gone longer than that he will tell her beforehand—and he always, always, comes back. That last part is important. Remember that. And, 2) Derek is the most technologically-challenged person she knows. He never checks his phone. In fact, Nova wouldn't be surprised if he has forgotten he even owns a phone.

It is for these reasons that when she does realise he is missing, she doesn't panic immediately. Instead, she forces herself to think back to when she saw him last... but, okay, um... she doesn't remember... And his car is still in the garage, he surely wouldn't have gone somewhere without it... And... oh, fuck, what if something is wrong...?

And suddenly it is like a switch has been flipped in the back of her mind and she drops the tray of freshly baked cookies she has been holding, letting it clatter to the floor. Her anxiety kicks in and she stands there in the kitchen foolishly, the pair of oven mitts covering her hands seeming more and more like a stupid decision because she cannot grasp onto her phone to save herself—or should she say... to save Derek?—and before she knows it, her phone is slipping from her hands and onto the floor, where it lands with a rueful crack.

Fucking hell.

Nova crouches down to pick it up, and that is when she sees it. There, across the room, the sunlight is streaming through the window, hitting a spot on the floor and illuminating an object she had not taken notice of before. Her footsteps are unsettlingly loud as she walks over, almost too loud against the silence within the loft. She bends down and reaches her hand out, her fingers grazing it: shell casings, bearing a stylised skull on them. Her stomach drops. There is only one family of hunters that use them, and that's the Calaveras.

     Despite never having encountered them, Nova knows of the Calaveras. In a family like hers, she'd be stupid not to.

There is no doubt about it: Derek is in trouble.

She leaves the shell casing where she found it. If something goes wrong and she doesn't make it back, it's best that she leaves the evidence there so that at least someone else can find it. And if Nova has to place money on who that would be, she would place her bets on Scott McCall—her Uncle Peter's ex-beta turned true alpha with a consistency for doing the right thing... and, if she dares to admit it, her friend. God, that feels weird for Nova to admit. The fact that she can count the amount of friends she has on the one hand and the fact that it is Scott McCall she includes in that—now that is something she never would have expected.

When her, Derek, and Laura—her other cousin—came back to Beacon Hills years after the fire that killed most of their family, Nova will admit, it was hard for her to find her footing in a new school, especially after Laura was murdered. Nova had her fair share of classes with Scott back then, and he had always been nice to her, even despite her snappy and defensive attitude. Then, as time went on and Derek began to give Scott the rundown of Werewolf 101, Nova started to let her walls down with Scott—and this was not something she does often: even her two other friends, Emilia and Ruby, don't know half of what is happening in Nova's mind. Scott understands her in a way that Nova isn't sure if Emilia and Ruby ever can.

Therefore, if there is one person in this world—other than Derek, of course, but he is currently... preoccupied, she supposes—that she can count on to find her, it is Scott.

Now, back to the matter at hand. The shell casings are a solid lead—and maybe her only lead—so Nova decides that the best course of action is for her to skip school and go to Mexico, where the Calavera family is primarily located, and she will confront them and they will give her Derek and she will bring him home.

     Totally simple!

Unfortunately, time and time again, the universe likes to kick her in the butt and prove her wrong. This is one of those times.

Nova manages to drive to Mexico and she parks her car around the block from the nightclub which serves as a front for the Calavera Compound, and then this is where it all starts to go wrong. Looking back, it probably wasn't a good idea to use Laura's old ID—from before she was murdered... yeah, Nova knows it sounds bad, but she isn't the legal drinking age yet; she's only seventeen!—to attempt to get in, but like, how is she supposed to know that only a special tarot-style card would grant entry!

Desperate times call for desperate measures.

And then... well... it isn't one of Nova's finest moments, that's for sure. She is angry. For reasons she doesn't know—and reasons she honestly does not care for at this moment!—they have Derek. And she needs to get him back... so she does the only thing she can think of to do: cause a goddamn scene! After a lot of loud swearing and countless attempts to jump past them, the bouncers let her in, only for them to escort her past the party scene and through to the back, where she comes face to face with the leader of the family, Araya Calavera.

Aha!

Nova sits down and immediately she frowns. Araya is sitting opposite her, leaning back in her chair with a fierce gaze and a composed demeanour.

"Laura Hale is dead," Araya says.

Nova blinks dumbly. What? "I know...?"

"Who are you?" Araya slides something across the table between them. Nova picks it up, then thinks, Ohhh. Laura's old ID. Right.

"I'm Nova," Nova says, and she resumes her angry frown.

Then they sit in silence for what feels like forever. Araya's poker face never falters. When Nova tilts her head sideways, Araya does the same. It is like staring into a mirror... if your reflection is a short and dangerous werewolf hunter. Finally, it gets to a point where Nova has had enough. Angry, she bursts out, "Look, do—?"

"We do not have Derek Hale."

Nova is momentarily taken aback. "How did you—?" Then she frowns again. "No. You're lying. Of course you have Derek."

"We do not have Derek Hale," Araya repeats slowly, speaking in the most patronising tone Nova has heard in a while. It is making her skin crawl with anger.

"You have Derek," Nova says, fighting within herself to stay level headed. Spoiler alert: it isn't working. She stands up, the chair scraping behind her as she does so. "And you're going to show me where he is!"

That's the last thing she is able to say before she is grabbed from behind, two arms linking up with hers and dragging her backwards. They drag her, kicking and screaming, out of the room and all the way down to their delightful basement, where they throw her in and slam the door closed. Nova wastes no time in getting up.

"Are you kidding me?!" Nova yells, repeatedly slamming her fists so hard against the metal door that they start to bleed. "This is fucking ridiculous!"

But no matter how loud she yells, no matter how hard she bangs on the doors... Nothing. There is no one there to hear her scream.

Fucking hell.

✶

     Time is an illusion.

At least, that's what Nova decides as she sits in the Calavera's basement, her back against the wall and her knees close to her chest. It is one of the grottiest places Nova has ever been in—there are sinks lined up against the wall with mirrors above them, but they are chipped and broken, and the entire place is covered in so much slime and grott that it's obvious it is no longer in use. Nova involuntarily shudders as she notices scratches on the walls, and she thinks, Is this where they kept Derek? But if they did, he is no longer here, and Nova finds herself hugging her knees closer to her chest.

Nova doesn't know how long it has been. It's moments like these where she wishes she had thought things out before she does them, because at least then she might have actually thought to buy a new phone before heading out on this dangerous caper. Instead, she is left with no phone and no way of contacting anyone, or more importantly, knowing the goddamn time. She feels like she is going mad. Ten minutes could have passed and Nova would think of it as ten hours.

Either way, she is alone.

Until she isn't.

Some time into her imprisonment—once again, Nova has no idea how long... could be hours, could be days!—the door to the basement opens, and before Nova can even comprehend getting up and running past them, four familiar faces are thrown onto the floor: Stiles Stilinski, Malia Tate, Kira Yukimura, and none other than Scott McCall. Stiles gets up and uses all of his strength—which is to say, not much—to attempt to get past the hunters. He fails his arms about dismally as he tries to move past them. They don't budge—Nova isn't surprised. She grins at his misery.

"Well, well, well," Nova says, deciding to announce her presence. "Didn't expect you guys to show up."

Stiles whips around to face her, dumbfounded. He steps forward, closer to her. "Nova?"

"Hmm. Actually, let's backtrack a bit," Nova says, making a face. She stands up and pushes herself off the wall she has been sitting against. "I definitely thought that Scott might show up, but the whole pack? Now that is a shocker."

Stiles is standing there, gaping at her, trying to find his words. Eventually he manages to ask, "What are you doing here?"

"Trying to find Derek," Nova says. She shrugs as if the answer is the most obvious thing in the world. "Duh."

"Uh-huh." Stiles has this incredulous look on his face, like he can't believe what he is hearing, and Nova knows she has him right where she wants him. "And what are you doing here?"

"Trying to—"

Stiles interrupts, "Trying to find Derek, yes, I know!"

Nova grins. There we go. Pissing off Stiles is one of her favourite hobbies.

She says, "I found evidence in the loft pointing to the Calaveras, so I got in my car and I left for Mexico to—"

"And you didn't think to tell this information because—?"

"Why would I? We're not friends," Nova says, and she means it. She is friends with Scott, but the rest of the pack? Nuh-uh, not at all. "But you're all here, now, too, so obviously it wouldn't have mattered either way."

His hands fly around wildly in frustration. "But that's not the point—!"

"And what is the point, Stiles?"

"You should've told us!"

"Ah, but we're not friends, so—"

"Ugh!" Stiles grunts, turning away from Nova. "I can't deal with this."

The satisfied expression on Nova's face is immediately wiped away as her eyes drift across the room where the others are. Malia and Kira are starting to sit up, but Scott... Scott's still lying on the floor. Nova's eyes widen with concern and she rushes to his side.

"What happened? Is he OK?"

Malia scowls. "Wolfsbane."

Nova turns her head back to face Scott, biting her lip nervously. But then she sees his eyelids start to drearily open and his face start to contort with the harshness of the light, and she sighs in relief. As Scott starts to sit up, his arms reach out and Nova grabs them and helps him stabilise.

Scott wheezes, "They don't have him—they don't have Derek!"

Nova almost drops Scott's arms in disbelief, but at the last second she thinks better of it. She frowns. "They... don't have Derek?"

Scott's eyes nearly bulge out of his head when he sees that it's her, and his jaw drops in shock, but before he can say anything, Kira says, "They've got Lydia."

"Lydia?" Scott says, his eyes still wide. "What do they want with Lydia?" The others shake their heads; they don't know.

Nova is wondering the same thing. There is obviously something else at play—other than Derek—because why else would the Calaveras have taken Lydia, a banshee? Banshees can sense when people are close to death, and not only do the Calaveras not have Derek, but Derek isn't dead...

Nova shakes the thought from her mind. Derek is not dead. He can't be.

After Scott gets over the shock of Nova being there too ("I've been trying to get ahold of you all day, Nova, but you'd gone completely radio silent!" Scott says to her, and she thinks, Great, I'm turning into Derek!), he stands up and starts trying to find a way out. He manages to wiggle his fingers in the side of the door, pulling hard, and despite his superhuman efforts he has no luck.

"I say, when that door opens again, we take out whoever's standing in the way and run for it," Malia says.

Kira frowns. "What about Lydia?"

"What about her?" Malia asks.

"We're not leaving without her," Scott says.

"Why not?"

Nova thinks they've got to give her a bit of a break. Malia had been stuck as a coyote for most of her life. Nova can't even imagine how it must feel to try and immerse yourself into everyday life with people after so long of being on your own. This is the one time—the one time—Nova has to hand it to Stiles, who is trying to teach Malia about it all. He says to her, "Because we don't leave without people. Remember, we talked about this? Rules of the wild kingdom don't apply to friends."

"Is that what you would do as a coyote?" Kira asks, a little apprehensive. "Leave her for dead?"

"If she was weak and injured, yeah," Malia says matter-of-factly. "If hunting had been bad that season, I would eat her—then I'd leave."

After a few seconds of perplexing silence, Stiles says, "Mmm... Believe it or not, that's progress."

"Alright, guys," Scott says, bringing the conversation back to the problem at hand. "We're not dead yet, and that means Araya wants something."

Kira frowns. "But if the Calaveras don't know where Derek is, that means they didn't take him from the loft, right?"

"Maybe he left on his own?" Stiles suggests.

"No way," Nova says immediately, shaking her head. "He wouldn't—not without telling me."

Scott says, "Maybe someone else got to him..."

Nova doesn't like that thought.

The door next to them slides open and Araya's men come in with their weapons raised. Nova turns around, her fists raised, knowing she will be able to at least throw in a few punches before they undoubtedly overpower her. But it all happens too fast, and the next thing she knows is that Scott and Kira are gone, and Nova, Stiles, and Malia are the only ones left in the basement. Panic starts to settle in Nova's chest. Nova doesn't care much for Kira, she can admit that, but Scott? That is a different story. She can feel the dread growing in the pit of her stomach, and she starts to wring her hands together. What do they want with Scott? And Kira, too, she supposes? And Lydia as well... Are they just picking them off, a few people at a time?

"They're killing him!"

Malia's voice breaks Nova out of her thoughts. Being a werecoyote, Malia has super hearing, so she is able to hear whatever is happening with Scott, Kira and Lydia. Nova crouches down beside Malia and Stiles. The lights above them flicker violently, and Nova looks up nervously.

The next few minutes consist of Malia giving them constant updates on what was happening, relaying the conversation back to Stiles and Nova, until she says something—just one word—that makes both Stiles and Nova freeze.

And with that one word, Nova's world comes crashing down.

Kate.

Kate Argent. Does this mean she is alive? The woman who single-handedly burnt down Nova's childhood home and almost her entire family along with it? Hell, Nova might've been dead, too, had she not been at the hospital with a broken arm after falling down the stairs in the middle of the night.

But how? How can Kate be alive?

Nova feels numb. The situation isn't fully hitting her. It doesn't feel real.

Here is the thing: Nova never knew her dad—he had left before Nova had even been born. Her mom, Eloise Hale, was the only parent who had been there for her. Eloise had fed her, bathed her, loved her. She had gone to all of Nova's music recitals, and had been there for her when she was sick. It has been almost seven years since the fire—since her death—and yet the facts still remain: Kate is the reason she is dead.

It is like she is underwater. Nova can vaguely hear Stiles saying her name, but it sounds so far away. She can sense some of Araya's men open the door to the basement and tell them they are free to go. Nova can feel her body moving, walking out of the compound with the others, but it is like she is completely detached from the situation, her mind operating on a different level of reality. Scott and the others are all talking about something but Nova isn't listening; she can't. Her mind is like a broken record, the one word repeating over and over and over. Kate, Kate, Kate, Kate. It is almost too much to bear.

"... Derek."

And yet suddenly, as Scott speaks, she is immediately brought back to reality, and all of her thoughts about Kate being alive narrow down into the one single thought: Derek—Kate has Derek.

"Do they know where he is?" Nova asks Scott.

Scott nods. "They're giving us a guide."

A woman—Nova recognises her as Braeden—gets off of the motorcycle and takes off her helmet. She gets into a conversation with Scott, but Nova isn't paying attention as her gaze catches someone else's. Nova clenches her jaw, and she walks over to where Araya Calavera is standing.

"I don't get it," Nova says to Araya. "Why did you keep me down there if you knew Kate was alive—and that she had Derek?"

"You were angry. Would you have believed me if I told you?" Araya poses. Nova doesn't say anything back, but she doesn't need to; both of them know what her answer is.

Nova walks a few steps over to where her car had been parked earlier, except... Fuck. It isn't there—someone must have stolen it. Nova casts her mind back to when she left it, and with a sinking feeling, she realises she had stupidly left her car keys in the car—she had been too panicked about Derek.

Pissed off, Nova turns around and starts to walk back over to the others. As she does this, looking at Braeden's motorcycle and Stiles' Jeep, it suddenly strikes her that there is no way she is able to go with them to get Derek. Stiles' car doesn't have any more seats left, and her car is gone. Even if Braeden has another motorcycle she can lend to her, Nova has never ridden one in her life, so she isn't exactly going to start now.

Fucking hell.

Being the intuitive werewolf that he is, Scott can sense her growing frustration and walks over to her. He says, "We're going to find him."

Nova stares into his eyes, dead serious, and says, "You better."

She knows she is forcing a lot of pressure on Scott, but here is the thing: Derek is one of the few family members she has left. If he is in trouble—which he is—then someone needs to find him. And Nova can't think of a better person for the job than Scott McCall. Some might call it high expectations, but Nova calls it faith.

Scott nods.

Although it practically breaks her heart to remove herself from the situation, she knows that there is no way she is able to go with them to get Derek. Going back home to Beacon Hills is her only option. There is a bit of a snag in her plan, though: she doesn't exactly have a way to get home, something she realises after Scott and the others drive off with Braeden, and the Calaveras go back inside, and she is left standing there alone.

"Fuck," she says loudly, earning some odd looks from people who are passing by.

But then a thought pops into her mind, and she supposes there is someone she can call... but she will have a lot of explaining to do. Nova manages to find a phone in a nearby store, and after a lot of convincing she is able to persuade the store owner to lend it to her for five minutes. Dialling the number, she waits with bated breath, but the call doesn't go through. Angling her body away from the scrutinising glare of the store owner, she dials the number again. The person on the other side of the line finally picks up.

Nova breathes out a sigh of relief.

"Hey... um, bit of a weird question, but... are you still in Mexico?"

✶

     Flash forward to an hour later, and Nova is sitting next to her boss, Ricardo Hernandez, as he drives them back to Beacon Hills. He owns and manages Beacon Hills Music, the place that Nova works at. Now, Nova knows what you're thinking—why does she have her boss' number memorised? She'll get to that in a second.

Nova turns to face him and says, "I can't thank you enough for this. I don't know what I would've done otherwise."

Ricardo briefly looks over at her and shrugs. He says, "Nova, seriously, it's fine. You're just lucky I was still here—and you're lucky I love you."

Alright, sure, that might have been a weird thing to hear from your boss, but here's the thing: Ricardo isn't just Nova's boss—he is more like a father figure, if she is being honest. Her mom, Eloise, and Ricardo were best of friends growing up, so it just makes sense that Nova gets along well with him, too; her and her mom are rather similar, something that Nova loves.

"So, how come you were in Mexico?" Ricardo asks, and by the light and casual tone of his voice, Nova can tell he had been wanting to ask that for the last hour they had been in the car together.

"Oh, you know," Nova says, sighing, "Derek got kidnapped, again."

Ricardo slams his foot down on the breaks so hard that Nova lurches forward in her seat, her hands reaching out to grab ahold of something solid to steady herself with.

"What?" Ricardo says, his eyes widening with alarm. "Then why aren't we trying to find him—?"

Nova mirrors his alarmed expression. She stares at him for a few seconds, still startled from the car's sudden halt, then says, "Scott's got it handled."

He visibly relaxes in his seat and says, "Oh. That's a relief."

"Uh-huh."

Ricardo eyes her carefully—he knows her too well. He says, "Nova, if Scott says he's got it handled, then he's got it handled." Waiting a bit, he tries to gauge her reaction, though it is hard. Then he says: "He's your friend—you can trust him."

She can feel his eyes on her, though she finds herself unable to meet his gaze. It is much easier to look out the window, to look down at her shoes, something—anything—to avoid making eye contact with him. There is this sort of vulnerability that comes with eye contact, and that is something that Nova is reluctant to experience on the best of days, let alone today, when her cousin is missing and there isn't a single thing she can do to help.

After a bit, she manages to say, "I know. I trust him." She shifts in her seat, wringing her hands together. Deep breath. "I'm just worried. I... I can't lose anyone else."

Ricardo's lengthy silence is the catalyst for Nova to finally look at him. He sighs, offering an empathetic smile. "C'mere..." he says, reaching over and wrapping her in an one-arm hug, his chin resting on the top of her head. "Derek will be fine."

Nova nods slightly, though she can't help but think how he doesn't know that for certain, and there is no way he can know that. There is the possibility that Derek is far from fine—but Nova doesn't want to experience that reality. Pulling away from the embrace, Nova clears her throat. "Alright, that's all. I'm fine. We can keep going."

"That's all?" Ricardo questions.

"Yes," Nova says, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. He is staring at her carefully, and Nova knows her face betrays her. She admits, "No. There's... there's something else."

"What is it?"

No matter how much she wants to tell him, no matter how much she wants to get those words out... there is something inside her that stands in the way of her from doing so. But she knows she has to say it.

"Kate Argent is alive. She's the one who took Derek."

Ricardo instantly goes still. "Oh," he says, becoming very reserved and slumping back in his seat. Nova understands—she has just told him that the woman who is responsible for the death of his best friend is still alive.

"Yeah," Nova says quietly, a humourless chuckle leaving her lips. "Oh."

✶

Authors Note!

in case anyone is a bit confused, i made this family tree so u can better see where nova fits into it all. the only characters i own from it are nova and eloise :)

word count: 4461
23.06.2022