Tangled

23 Ava. Paranoia and Socrets (IV)

23 Ava: Paranoia and Secrets (IV)

I stare at Selene in shock, emotions roiling within me like a sea at storm. Searing heat flushes my skin, beads of sweat forming along my hairline. My legs tremble, the world tilting precariously, and I clutch at Selene’s fur, her solid presence the only thing anchoring me.

“Are you…” I swallow thickly, the words catching in my throat. “Are you my wolf?”

The question seems absurd even as it leaves my lips, defying all logic and reason. And yet, as Selene preens, her gaze gleaming with an intelligence that transcends any mere dog, a hysterical giggle bubbles up from deep within me.

“My wolf is a husky,” I wheeze between breathless peals of laughter. “How does this even happen?”

Selene’s ears flatten against her skull, and she emits a low growl, her displeasure rippling through our newfound connection like a physical force. I am not a husky, her voice echoes in my mind, resolute and unyielding.

The laughter dies on my lips as abruptly as it began,

1/6

23 Ava: Paranola and Secrets (IV)

and I gape at her, struggling to reconcile the reality before me. “But… you look like one.” Sᴇaʀ*ᴄh the FindNʘᴠᴇl.nᴇt website on Gøøglᴇ to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

Appearances can be deceiving, my human. There’s a hint of amusement in her tone now, as if she’s enjoying my bewilderment. I am a wolf, through and through. This form is merely a vessel, a guise to help me blend in among your kind.

My brow furrows as I study her. Nope. Still a husky.

“Why didn’t you tell me sooner?” The words come out harsher than I intend, tinged with a hint of accusation. If my wolf had appeared, my life wouldn’t have been so terrible. And maybe, at the Gala, I wouldn’t have been

thinking over things that

glaring at

steadily, her eyes ancient and inscrutable. You were not ready, she says simply. Your path has been a winding one, filled

power over you.

suck in a sharp breath. her words

4:46 ►

2/0

Paranola and

weight of my past–the isolation, the rejection, the constant struggle to find my place- presses down upon me, and I sag against her, suddenly exhausted.

You have learned that you are strong, but you are more than you know, my human. And I will be by your side every step of the

existence. I realize now that it’s what’s been helping me get through it all. I can

through my abdomen. I’m on fire. “Why does this hurt?”

roar, and weakness comes with a whimper, Selene says, like that means anything at all.

anything,” I wheeze between the worst cramps I’ve ever

14:46

36

Paranola and Secrets

away a few paces, looking behind her. Get up, little cub. We have a long way

1. go.

going to die here for a little while. Why’d you take

is a place we need to be, she explains, and I can hear the patience in her words. Come

push to my feet with a groan, swaying with every step. “We should

of reach, leading me somewhere.

torturous effort as pain lances through my abdomen.

our path. Selene navigates the darkness with ease, her lithe form weaving through the

na

can go no further the

14.46 —

4/6

and Secrets