Tangled

18 Lucas: Realization (1)

18 Lucas: Realization (I)

LUCAS

The frost of winter thaws, giving way to the brisk air of spring. The days drag on, each moment blurring into the next as my frustration builds. Weeks have passed since that fateful night at the Lunar Gala, and still, the

Blackwood Pack’s intentions remain shrouded in

mystery, even with summer peeking around the corner. My wolf paces restlessly within me, yearning for answers, for action, for her.

My obsession grows.

I slam my fist on the desk, the impact reverberating through the room. Kellan, ever the loyal beta, barely flinches. He knows better than to disturb me when I’m

like this, consumed by the need to unravel the web of

secrets that surrounds us.

A missive arrived last week from Alpha Blackwood, a terse notification that his beta’s daughter, Jessa Grey, would be attending the local university here in Granite City. The balls on that asshole, sending her into our territory without so much as a proper request for

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18 Lucas: Realization (1)

permission. It’s an unspoken rule among our kind, a courtesy extended to the ruling pack when an outsider plans to stay within their domain.

I can’t help but wonder if this is another ploy, another move in the twisted game that Blackwood seems intent on playing. Jessa’s presence here, so close to the heart of our pack, sets my teeth on edge. What secrets does she carry? What lies will she spin to further her alpha’s agenda?

My thoughts drift naturally to her, the girl who haunts my every waking moment. Ava. The memory of her scent, her touch, the way she surrendered to me in the garden–it’s seared into my very being. And yet, my hatred grows by the day.

the length of my office like a caged beast. The cool air brought in by an open window does little to

need answers.

City. I want to know her every move, every breath she takes. And if you find

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Lucas: Realization

Kellan nods, his expression grim. He understands the

let my mind linger on Ava. On the garden. On that scent that I

beyond the walls of this room. “A way to force a mate connection, to manipulate the bond between

know, Lucas. When I met Ava that night, I didn’t sense anything

manipulation.”

it in the garden,

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Realization

a connection, and

possible, but her relationship with her family seemed strained. The way they interacted, the tension between

united front.”

“Exactly. And that’s why it’s even more likely. Think about it, Kellan. If Ava’s relationship with her father is rocky, she’d be even more desperate to prove herself, to earn his approval. Sacrificing herself, using her body as a tool to further their agenda… it’s exactly the kind of thing a desperate wolf

widen. “I hadn’t considered that

sense.” Sᴇaʀ*ᴄh the (F)indNƟvᴇl.ɴet website on Gøøglᴇ to access chapters of novels early and in the

turn away, my hands curling into fists at my sides. The thought of Ava being used in such a way, of her willing participation in this deception, fuels the

growl, my

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Realization

let them destroy everything we’ve built, everything we stand

keep a

they try to mess with the Westwood Pack.” There’s no other option.

that is mine to protect. The Blackwood Pack may be able to

matter the cost.

***

the door jolts me awake, scattering the papers strewn across my desk. I blink, trying to clear the fog of sleep from my mind as I

out,

of my deltas, Ryder Thorn. He enters the room, his posture stiff and his expression

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