Tangled

139 Ava: A Shocking Finale (III) —

END SEASON TWO

“You’re making this so much harder than it should be. I was hoping to savor this moment, but now I have to rush my meal, instead.” He sounds disappointed, not angry, and the difference makes me shudder.

It’s worse than him being infuriated. It shows that my struggles are no more than an inconvenience to him.

When his fangs break skin, the pain is unbearable.

It’s worse than fire in my veins. It’s an ache so deep that my entire body throbs and burns, I open my mouth to scream, but no sound comes out; I can’t

breathe.

Skimming over the pain is an ecstasy that taunts me with bliss, tantalizing with its lack of pain. I yearn for it, wanting to sink in, wanting to escape this torture-

Eyes, Ava! Selene shouts. Go for the eyes!

With a desperate cry, I jab my fingers toward his face, aiming for those cold, mocking eyes. He jerks his head back and I can feel my neck rip and tear, blood

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139 Ava A Shocking Finale (il)-END SEASON TWO

pouring.

But not before I fe

my nails sink into something soft

and yielding. He howis, his grip loosens, and I wrench myself free, staggering away.

The vampire clutches at his face, blood seeping between his fingers. One eye is a ruined mess, but the other glares at me with unadulterated hatred.

“You’ll pay for that, bitch,” he spits, his voice a guttural

rasp.

I hold my hands against my neck, against the blood pouring out, gasping for air to fill my lungs. It’s like they can’t inflate fully, can’t fill with oxygen.

This time rage fuels his movements as he lunges for me, messy and uncoordinated. My brain’s already off, moving on instinct, through repetitive motions in

training.

A quick sidestep. A knee to the groin, a practiced weak point. He’s wide open and doubles over with a grunt as I follow up with an elbow to the back of his neck,

sacrificing blood loss for success.

He hits the ground hard. Good to know pressure

points also work on vampires

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139 Ava: A Shocking Finale ()-END SEASON TWO

He won’t be down long–may

seconds.

I dart to Lisa, grabbing her under the arms and dragging her back, scrabbling for purchase.with my

slick from

and my vision blurs from darkness to light, spotted with prismatic shapes.

face a mask of rage. Blood drips from his ruined eye, painting a gruesome picture. He stalks toward us, his movements

elegant monster from before.

a chance.

to rip you apart,” he snarls, spittle flying from his lips. “Piece by fucking

not while carrying her. My only choice is to

If it arrives.

crackling current that dances along

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A Shocking Finale (1) END SEASON

beneath my

It’s electric.

It’s terrifying.

It’s hope.

loud snarl and I trust the power

time itself changes. A punch that before would have been impossible to track is now something I can not only

to me without

How to block.

How to move.

hand against his arm, how to utilize his momentum to throw

please.

step as I dodge.

offensive strikes, but I’ve practiced defense to exhaustion every

he tries

regain his balance

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Shocking Finale

go on forever.

can feel the wooziness in

the way

crop top is soaked in

I be unconscious already?

little longer, Selene says, an encouraging

then that I notice the sounds outside

little area.

howls in the

of sirens.

and growling of wolves here, fighting. Perhaps they’re on

an occasional crash. A lot of

peaceful back here, with only Teddy and Bren’s corpses, Lisa’s unconscious form, and the vampire in front of

tactics, his fury fading, his face wary. “Come with us, kitten. I’ve been searching for so long. Don’t you want to know the

My story?

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you hate these stupid ke? Their

old ways?”

Come with me, kitten. I’ll keep you safe, teach you

contract. Any agreement will bind you. Selene’s words are urgent, and I have so many fucking questions,

body.

how bad the damage

be small.

smooth and unblemished beneath my fingers, beneath the blood coating every part of

wonder I’m not

pain is there, throbbing, but the damage has disappeared.

the faint outline of

Ava: A Shocking Finale

your friend, too. I’ll give you the freedom he can’t. I’ll give you the knowledge she won’t. Come, Ava Grey,

for the love of my family, sways

me holds her back, despite the faint tingle of the ecstasy I’d felt taunting me from beyond the pain when he

sense of it all.

power, feeling it pour out of me. For a second, I can

blink.

still

vampire kneels before me, cupping my cheek with a

Ava!

sure if he asked me any questions.