Chapter 22

Derek P.O.V. (Sterek is endgame people!)

**

Derek woke up from the constant ringing of his phone. Pack night was over, and the pack had gone home for the night.

''Hello?'' Derek answered groggily.

''Hale. Is my son at your home?'' Came the gruff voice of the sheriff.

Derek shook his head to get rid of the sleepiness.

''What? No, he went home early because you called him to ask if he-'' Derek couldn't even finish his sentence before a door was slamming outside.

''He didn't come home! Open your damn door!'' The sheriff hissed.

Derek hung up without saying anything else and quickly put on sweatpants and a T-shirt before opening the door for his loft.

The sheriff was just at the door, arm already raised to knock. He looked worried and resigned. He stormed inside without a word before Derek closed the door.

''Derek, I don't know where Stiles is. I already put an APB out for his jeep; I called Scott, Lydia, Malia. I already went to the hospital, the preserve, the freaking library, the high school. I don't think he would've gone to campus without telling anyone. But nobody knew where he is. You've got to help me.''

Desperation and sadness wafted around the sheriff. But Derek only was already thinking where the fuck Stiles could've gone. There was no baddy of the week, as Stiles called it. At least there hadn't been a threat in Beacon Hills for some time.

He left cheery and without worries tonight, so it isn't like he planned on going away. Stiles would've smelt anxious, and that wasn't the case. Derek's thoughts immediately jumped to kidnapping. But who would take Stiles? Derek was already pulling on his leather jacket and putting on shoes while the sheriff kept pacing in the loft.

''He always texts when he is back at home, but tonight he didn't. I thought that he was tired and would already be asleep when I would get home from my shift. But when I opened his bedroom door, the bed was empty, and it didn't seem like he had slept there at all. I called him thirty times already, but no answer, every call straight to voicemail.'' He was rambling like his son, and Derek gulped for a moment in the resemblance.

''What did Scott say? Had he heard anything since Stiles had left?'' Derek asked.

''No, no, nothing. I already had Parrish patrol the road from here to home. Checking if he maybe got into a car accident or something. But I haven't heard anything yet. I didn't see anything on my way here.''

''That's good thinking. I'm going to check the parking lot if I can smell anything.''

With that, they left the loft quickly and got downstairs. Derek found Stiles scent rather quickly, and together with the sheriff, they got into the cruiser to follow it.

Stiles would have told so many jokes, Derek thought while they were driving with him, hanging out of the window like a dog.

Soon they drove out of Beacon Hills towards LA. It was getting harder and harder to catch Stiles scent, but Derek could always pick out Stiles's smell. Since the day of the Kanima attack, he could've pick out Stiles's heartbeat and smell everywhere without a problem.

At first, he just thought that because Stiles was in his pack, he was so toned into his scent and heartbeat. But when Stiles got together with Malia and later with Lydia, he knew it was more than that. It only got worse when Stiles and Lydia broke up, and Stiles took the opportunity to let loose in college. He almost always smelled like other people.

He couldn't bear to see Stiles with other people, but he knew that Stiles would be happier without Derek. He wasn't loveable, or sweet, or funny. He knew he looked good, but being hot is not the best way to keep a relationship. So he kept his distance, even if he saw the lingering glances Stiles would give him sometimes that made his stomach flip. He didn't give in. Stiles deserved to be happy.

He knew that he shouldn't have gotten feelings for the guy. Everybody he loved would betray him or die. He knew without a doubt that Stiles would never betray him.

So even if it got harder and harder to smell Stiles's scent, Derek could keep track of it. He had gotten several calls already from Scott and the rest of the pack, asking if there were any updates, but at the moment, they were still driving towards a big city.

After driving for half an hour, Derek directed them towards a side road. When they came to the end of it, they saw a barn. Derek could smell Stiles inside but couldn't hear him. Panic was already coursing through him, but he remained calm on the outside.

He didn't hear any other heartbeats either, so unless the sounds were cloaked by a witch or something, the barn was empty from people.

The sheriff had his gun raised before entering, and Derek was ready to spring on anyone stepping in his way of finding Stiles.

Inside was a big truck, but Stiles's scent oozed out of the back. Derek broke the lock easily. When they opened the truck, they saw a baby blue jeep standing there.

Derek jumped into the truck to check the jeep, chanting in his head:

he's safe, he's safe, he has to be safe.

''It's empty,'' Derek growled out. He punched the wall of the truck, letting out the frustration he now felt.

''Let's go back to the road. Maybe you can pick up another scent from him.'' The sheriff grumbled before calling in the jeep. There was another cruiser pulling in when they got back to the road. By the looks of it, it was Parrish.

They didn't find a scent. Scott, Malia, and Liam had joined them with searching, but they couldn't find any other trace of Stiles.

The next day they called in Danny's help. He tracked down every set of road camera he could find and came up empty and without a hint in which direction Stiles had gone.

Derek didn't sleep and even called Peter to help them. When he hung up, he was surprised that Peter was at the loft door within five minutes.

''Stiles is my favorite. I will do anything to find that boy.'' His uncle declared. Ignoring the growl he got from Derek.

They searched everywhere. The third day was when it happened.

Derek felt it first and roared in agony before dropping to the floor on his knees, feeling broken by the bond that just snapped. Then came Scott reacting in a similar way, then Malia, Liam, and even Peter.

Scott let out a broken howl, a mourning cry for his brother. Derek and the rest of the pack joined him. Lydia rushed in when she heard the howling and started sobbing.

''I didn't feel a scream! I didn't feel it! He can't be- NO! I don't believe it! NO!'' She screamed, letting out a Banshee wail in progress, knocking over the wall next to her.

''STILES!!!'' She screamed, but it was a broken scream. It was pure heartbreak for losing one of her closest friends, again.