Tangled

61 Ava: Homecoming (III)

Alpha Renard is someone I have had few encounters with. He’s come by the house many times through my life, but my parents always sent me to my room, not wanting to parade their shame in front of him.

Today is different.

Today, he sits across from me at the dinner table as my mother serves him, apologizing for the dinner- something Phoenix had brought home from a

restaurant in town. Everyone’s gaze seems to center

on me.

I can tell Phoenix and Dad are furious with me, but

there’s little point in looking in their direction. There’s no point ruining what tiny appetite I have.

Alpha Renard is an imposing figure, towering well over six feet with a muscular build that speaks of years of combat training. His brown hair is neatly trimmed and his face shaved; I don’t think I’ve ever seen him in a state of disarray. He likes to show off the deep scars.

clawed across his face.

Shifters don’t scar easily, but it isn’t impossible.

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61 Ava: Homecoming (III)

Like all alphas, he has an intimidating presence and a confident air that demands respect. But his eyes hold a cruel glint that has me cringing from eye contact.

He won’t stop staring at me, even as he talks with the

others.

I keep my gaze fixed on the plate in front of me. Alpha Renard’s intense stare burns into my face, making my skin prickle with unease. His eyes linger on the split in my lip, the abnormal color across my cheeks. They still throb.

the tense silence. “What happened to your daughter’s face?”

throat, his voice strained

has become willful in her time

discipline

his words. I risk a glance, finding a sinister look come over Alpha Renard’s features. “I will take care of it,” he says, his tone

to me, his eyes boring into mine with an intensity that makes me

Ava Homecoming

voice laced with a dark edge.

the words

on my tongue. I can sense

Aspen pack had me. But

they know everything, and I

if they don’t, and I tell them

that be worse?

So I lie.

to be in a car with some rogue shifters they were chasing, and got injured. They took care of my wounds after that as an

scent of deception? Or is

I stab at a piece of buttery roasted potato, shoving it into my

Homecoming

to fight to keep from gagging, chewing in a slow and methodical

he won’t bother

But he does.

can regain your freedom. We are all family here. You

from my lungs. He’d wanted to breed me before I ever left the pack. If they decide I’m a true omega, like Clayton did, I’ll never be able to escape that

giant fist on the table, the dishes

I flinch, shrinking

seat.

barely contained rage. “We know all about your

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4417

Homecoming (III)

the tension, dripping with disgust. “You’re an embarrassment to

Blackwood Pack, Ava.”

twisted applications of the truth are not unfamiliar to me. Anger surges

steady. “You’re saying I threw myself at him, but you also just said

his jaw clenching. “Watch your tone, girl,” he snaps,