I don't think they were really interested in them, so much as they were using them to get closer to, maybe even get info on, Scott's pack, which is why Aiden got pissed at his brother when Ethan started actually caring about Danny. They were there and they were somewhat close to the group (though not close enough that they'd know about the Alpha Pack right away), so the pack used them. At least that's what I pieced together.
As for this episode, I enjoyed it. I'm reserving judgement on the Meredith reveal until we get the full story. I was a little annoyed that dumbass Scott didn't send Mason to turn off the music as soon as he figured out what was happening, but he probably wasn't able to think clearly at that moment, so I guess he's sorta got a reason for being an idiot. The printer thing was stupid, and I don't see why they needed to increase Liam's price. He's still brand new to the whole werewolf thing, so he's really not worth 18 mill yet. Then again, Lydia sure as hell isn't worth 20, so I guess I just need to stop caring about the numbers on the dead pool. Everything else was pretty good though. I liked seeing Malia on her own at the bonfire, just doing her own thing away from the rest of the group, and I loved her repeatedly trying to shut Scott down because all she wanted to do was dance and get trashed. I feel you, girl. I wanna see more of Liam's friend. And less of the various assassins. They're not even trying to give them characters, so every time one of them shows up on my TV, I kinda just check out. If the writers can't give me any reason to feel anything about a particular character beyond "they're trying to kill the heroes," I can't bring myself to give a damn about anything they do. I'd rather they just focus on Kate and Peter if they need to fill their villain screen time quota.