Winnie pulled up behind her father's car, every bone in her body going against it. Although she put the gear into park, she didn't get out.

A moment later, Aaron rapped a knuckle on her window.

Instead of removing herself, she rolled down the glass. "I don't want to do this."

"I know, but you need to." Mr. Jones, carrying a hardback briefcase, spoke to his daughter with a firm tone but clear compassion. "They only want you there as more a scout than anything."

"Then why am I here? I don't want to look like a villain to Allison."

Aaron gave his daughter a look, "Villain is a bit much, don't you think?"

Winnie glared back at Aaron, "Whose side are you on?"

"Your side, Win. I'm always on your side." Mr. Jones made a motion towards himself, "Come on and we'll go in."

Winnie rolled up her window, surprising her father by shutting off her car and climbing out instead of driving off. In a black crop top, a red skirt and thigh high black stockings, she looked irritated. Holding her keys, she absently tapped the toe of her black heeled boots. "I feel like I'm playing some sort of game."

"You are," replied Aaron as he put a hand on Winnie's shoulder. "And you have to play. There's no choice."

Winnie bit the inside of her cheek, her matte red lips softly pursed. "What's the prize? What do I get out of this? For acting against my friends?"

"Your life, honey. That's what." Aaron kissed Winnie's forehead. "I know I haven't done enough for you. So let me do this." He held out the briefcase to her, "This is your cover. It'll give them a reason to believe you. I need to know you'll be safe."

Winnie took the handle from him, her ring clicking against it as she took its weight. She looked up to her father, "I don't think I can do this."

Aaron out a hand on each of her shoulders, "I know you can. Do you remember everything I taught you?"

Softly, Winnie nodded.

"That's my girl," said Mr. Jones. "Be brave for me, okay? It's all about presentation. Believe it and they will too."

Winnie took in a deep breath, looking up to find the side door to the house propped open by a large man in brown leather. She let a placid expression take over, confidence in her step as she approached the way to the basement.

All eyes turned to Winnie as she took a small staircase into the basement, hunters and weapons galore. She, no less, looked like a force to be reckoned with.

"Evening, gentlemen." Winnie barely glanced to Allison, catching her horrified expression for only a minute.

Chris smiled discretely, motioning towards the metal table in the middle of the room. "Glad you can join us."

Mr. Jones followed down the stairs, staying to the side with a cigarette behind his ear.

Winnie set the briefcase on the table, undoing the latches to reveal a small array of handguns. She removed a dark model, it looking so natural in her manicured hands. "FN Five-Seven. It's a semi-auto good for long and short range. 5.7 by 28 caliber with a 4.8 inch barrel Polymer grips with an adjustable 2 dot grip."

Chris leaned his palms on the table, watching Winnie. "Action?"

Winnie set down the gun on its side in front of Argent. "Striker fired." She held a discrete smirk, able to see the look on Chris' face. Bringing out a matte black gun, she held it up. "HL45 Tactical. .45 caliber with a 5.11 inch barrel. Double and single action; 10 clip plus 1. Tritium three dot sight."

Allison tried to hide the look on her face, having to bite her tongue.

Winnie had played her.

Winnie set down the commonly used weapon of choice for most state police. She brought out the third and final gun, "Remington R1 Enhanced, .45 cal."

"What's so enhanced about it?" questioned Allison almost bitterly.

Winnie brought out a thin barrel, screwing it onto the tip of the gun, adding more than twice the length. "Clean silencer, dovetailed two dot sight."

"How much?" Chris asked.

"Consider it a loan for the evening," said Aaron as he sparked a match with his thumb. Lighting his cigarette, he nodded to Chris and took the stairs out.

"There's two of each," announced Winnie as she set out the guns and shut the case. "Divy how you please."

"What about you?" questioned a hunter named Phil, who held a sharp look with watery gray eyes.

"Don'y worry about me," she told the man with little inflection. "I can handle myself." Removing a version of a .45 glock, she made her point before returning it to the specialty garter on her thigh.

Gerard held a pleased look, approving.

"Only hand guns?" asked Damien vindictively.

Winnie looked to the door, her father returning with an even bigger case. She brought out each assault rifle, naming them off with ease. Glancing to Chris, she moved out of the way. "All yours, Mr. Argent."

Chris looked around to his men, "Okay, the party's in a warehouse just inside the industrial sector." He looked back to his daughter, "Allison has learned that Jackson Whittemore will be there seeking his next target out of the crowd. Since we still have little clues as to just how strong he is, we need to be extremely cautious."

Winnie watched Gerard pop back a handful of pills, discretely texting behind her back.

"When Allison or Winnie have Jackson's location and has determined him to be at the optimal point where we can take him down, one of them will signal me." Chris clipped a belt around his waist, a holster attached. He moved his eyes back to the girls, "Optimal meaning as far away from the crowd as possible."

Both of them nodded, agreeing to the plan.

"There will be no collateral damage tonight," Chris announced to his men. However, he nodded to Allison. "Go ahead," he said, dismissing her.

Allison stood, ignoring Winnie as she headed back up the stairs and into the house. Matt would be there soon to pick her up, and she needed to make a show about it.

"As willing a participant as she seems," said Gerard once Allison left, "your young protégé there also appears to be under the impression that we are planning a trap."

Winnie's phone vibrated in her palm, a glance showing her that Allison had responded to the message asking for Allison to let Winnie explain.

Explain how?

Chris clipped his magazine into place on the HK45 Tactical with a gold finish and put it in his holster. "I think she doesn't need to know any more than that."

"For the rest of us then," Gerard told the group, "let's be perfectly clear. You don't trap a creature this dangerous." He popped up the tip of a hunting knife, staring directly at Winnie. "You kill it."

And by the way he looked at her, she felt like he knew.

She felt like she was next.

¥ ¥ ¥

Winnie barely acknowledged the rave around her as she immediately headed for the women's bathroom.

Allison waited inside with an annoyed look, even more as she spotted Winnie. "What the hell is going on?" she lowly asked in the slightly crowded restroom.

Winnie went close to Allison, the music still loud. "I swear, it's not what you think."

"Then what the hell is it, Winnie?" snapped Allison in question. "What kind of person are you to side with them when you're something they would hunt?"

"That's exactly it! I'm not on their side! It's a cover, Al. You grandfather saw me on the library footage and showed up at my house. To keep him from finding out I was different, my dad and I lied. Your father thinks I've been working with mine the whole time."

Allison's eyebrows furrowed, "What about at the house? Your gun?"

"It's all for show," Winnie stressed. "My dad drilled me on those guns specifically. I didn't know shit about guns until two hours ago." She slightly referenced her skirt, "The gun I have is only in case I get attacked. My dad wouldn't let me come unless I promised to bring it. Safety's staying on, I swear."

"Oh, thank god," Allison said before giving Winnie a hug.

Hugging Allison back, Winnie hesitated. "Was it really that believable?"

Allison laughed, nodding as the two started to leave the bathroom. "I totally understand why you did theater."

Winnie grinned, heading back into the thumping rave as she thought of the story she'd told Allison about falling through a stage and being scarred for life.

"I've gotta go catch my date, but stay safe," said Allison over the techno music that filled the warehouse.

"You too," she told her before separating from her.

Winnie drew stares, everything about her intriguing; from her curled hair and perfectly winged eyeliner to the small stretch of skin visible from the end of her short skirt and her mid thigh socks.

Strobes went off around the floor, glow stick on nearly every party goer dancing to the ear rattling music coming from the stage.

Waved over by a set of girls from her art class, they gave her a few glow bracelets and kept her around to dance.

Winnie grinned as she let go, dancing to the music. She, for a moment, wasn't even looking for Jackson. Although she slowly made her way from the art classmates, she couldn't be bothered.

A hand grabbed her waist, causing Winnie to spin and find Isaac. She smiled lightly, dancing with him as he held her waist closely.

Winnie took off one of her bracelets, securing it around Isaac's wrist so he blended more with the crowd.

Erica stood a little off to the side, rolling her eyes. He was only supposed to grab Winnie and bring her with them. Only Winnie could possibly distract him that much.

Issac was surprised with Winnie, seeing as how quiet she'd been at Deaton's the other night to him. He held on to her, Winnie willingly dancing with him at a proximity he'd only dreamed about.

Erica cleared her throat after walking up next to the two, causing their near kiss to not stand a chance. "Do you two mind? We've got a job to do." Stalking off, she glanced back to make sure they were following her.

Isaac took Winnie's hand, hers minor compared to his.

Winnie's cheeks were slightly pink, keeping her hand wrapped in his as they left the dance floor.

Like Erica said, they had a job to do.

Scott waved them over, bringing out their defense against Jackson.

Winnie let go of Isaac, letting him get close to Scott to keep out any wandering ears. She and Erica stood like guards, both still able to here.

"I need you to do this," Scott told Isaac as they both leaned on a wooden beam. "It's ketamine - it'll slow him."

"Why me?" Isaac asked.

"Because," replied Scott, "I've got to make sure that Argent doesn't completely ruin the plan." He moved the large syringe towards Isaac, "Okay, look, you better do it intravenously, which means in the vein. When you find him, you pull back on this plunger right here. In the neck's probably going to be the easiest. So you find a vein, jam it in there, pull back on the trigger." He looked up to the other beta, "Be careful."

Isaac lightly laughed, holding the syringe. "Oh, I doubt it'll even slightly hurt him."

"No, I mean you," Scott said. "I don't want you to get hurt."

Suddenly, Winnie interrupted.

"He's here."