Tangled

140 Ava: Lisa’s Gone

“Ava!”

Kellan’s familiar voice should bring hope, but all I feel is despair as I stare into the distance, wishing that vampire would reappear.

A thousand of them could come and it would be fine. As long as they bring Lisa back.

“Ava! Can you hear me?”

Kellan’s face swims in and out of focus, a hazy blur against the night sky. I squint, trying to bring him into clarity, but it ike trying to grasp smoke.

“They have Lisa,” I whisper, the words scraping my throat raw. “The vampire… He took her.”

Kellan’s eyes widen, a flicker of anguish passing over his features before he schools them into careful neutrality. But I can see the tension in his jaw, the rigidity of his shoulders. He’s barely holding it together.

“I know, Ava. We’ll get her back.” His voice is strained, distracted. Like his mind is a million miles away even

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140 Ava Lisa’s Gone

as he’s right here with me.

Strong arms scoop me up, cradling me against a broad chest. For a moment, I think it’s Kellan, but the scent is wrong. Earthy and unfamiliar, not the piney–leather smell I associate with him. I turn my head, blinking sluggishly at the face above me. It takes a moment for recognition to click into place. One of the guards from Lisa’s apartment. I can’t recall his name, but I

remember him standing sentry outside her door, stoic and watchful.

He carries me away from the carnage, away from the bodies strewn across the grass like broken dolls. I want to protest, to demand he put me down, but my limbs feel weighted, my tongue thick and useless in my

mouth.

Behind us, I can hear Kellan pacing, his footsteps heavy and agitated against the ground. He’s growling, the sound low and menacing, interspersed with words I can’t quite make out. But one stands out, sharp and clear amid the jumbled mess of my thoughts.

Mate.

He keeps saying it, over and over, like a mantra. Like a

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140 Ava: Lisa’s Gone

prayer.

I try to focus on him, to call out and ask what he means, but the world is tilting, spinning off its axis. Darkness creeps in at the edges of my vision, a black tide threatening to pull me under.

The last thing I see before unconsciousness claims me is Selene running in from the woodline, coming straight for me.

Ava!

***

The hospital ceiling greets me again when I open my Sᴇaʀᴄh thᴇ (ꜰind)ɴʘvel.nᴇt website on Gøøglᴇ to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

eyes.

is getting

her warm weight against me. Someone must have let her in.

chase around the garden. They call themselves wolves and can’t even

hands down her fur, turning

side.

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Lisa’s Gone

Kellan.

that I’m awake, his brow furrowed and

a whisper in my mind.

What?

That ma s no sense.

could smell her

How fascinating.

going to be furious to know…

My heart sinks.

Selene assures me, her voice

her yet?” I

How do you feel?”

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Lisa’s Gone

side of my throat, I confirm that the

in my chest, but I already

what that is.

half–bond. We have to get

don’t know much about vampires–but I know that being bonded

Correct.

me over, like I haven’t probably been poked and prodded

shortly, not willing to talk about what happened. “What about Lisa? Do we

information on her?”

at her name and shakes his head. “No.

Kind of freaky. Kept

in frustration. “It’s impossible to find a single

description.“.

5/10

Ava: Lisa’s

sorry. I didn’t

you feel bad, Ava. It’s a common problem when vampires are the

says. Their

us a small hint about his age,” Kellan continues, “but even that isn’t a guarantee anymore. Not with the

“Vampires dye

their hair, but they also wear contacts. They live among humans,

the thought. Vampires walking freely among the unsuspecting populace, wearing whatever

muses. Adaptation

Right. Lisa’s been taken

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Lisa’s Gone

who sees us as nothing more than kittens to

how do we find her?” I ask, trying to keep the desperation

jaw clenches. “We have our ways. Every

leaves a trace. It’s just a matter of picking

supernatural, Selene corrects,

for? Let’s go find

my shoulder stops me. “Ava, you’re in no condition to go anywhere. You need to

fine,” I insist, even as the room spins a little. “I can’t just sit here while

fully recovered. Your body needs time. Your wounds are healed, but

I can feel the exhaustion pulling at me. The adrenaline that kept me