Tangled

158

158

158 Ava: From the Past

"Ava, is that you?"

The familiar rasp has me frozen, my heart lurching into my throat. Slowly, I turn around, coming face-to-face with a ghost from my

past.

Our neighbor. Margot Mitchell.

Her once vibrant auburn hair is streaked with silver, her face a

roadmap of wrinkles and scars. It's her eyes that haunt me. Piercing green eyes that see everything and do nothing.

"Margot," I greet, my voice tight with caution. "What are you doing

here?"

She limps

toward me, her gait uneven from some injury she incurred long before I was born. I remember asking about it once, and my mother slapped the back of my head, admonishing me for my rudeness. "Oh, Ava. I'm

I tense as she reaches out, half-expecting her to grab me, to drag me back to the hellscape I escaped. But she merely places a hand on my arm, her touch feather-light.

"I'm sorry," she whispers, her eyes glistening with unshed tears. "I'm so sorry for everything. For not intervening when..." She trails off, her gaze flickering to the ground.

The shame she tries to portray leaves me feeling dirty. Unclean from her mere presence.

Memories flash through my mind, unbidden. Margot's face in the

$2.00

150 As from the Pant

window, watching as I was taunted and beaten, even by her own son. Listening at the front door as my parents berated me, their voices carrying through the window. Her figure rushing inside. when I tried beggi I was thirteen.

He broke my wrist.

hours that day. Hours. Until my parents,

always watching. Never

"You're sorry?" Anger surges through me, hot and bitter, fueling my words. "Why are you even saying that?

none of us could help you. Please." She grabs at my arm again. "We need you to understand us. To speak

Ah. She needs something.

No wonder she's here.

her apology was genuine. It's dead now, like so many other little parts of "How

am hired to clean

Ava From the

of your pack. So many of us are separated now. Taken from our mates. Forced to cut ties with the alpha. Westwood is tearing

intention of helping you or anyone else.

her features twisting into an ugly

stalks into the room, her hackles. raised, teeth

amber. For a moment, I think she might actually shift and attack. My heart pounds against

in, and Margot's demeanor changes instantly. She straightens, smoothing her expression into

tone clipped. "We can talk when you've settled in." With that, she turns and flees

watches her go, then turns to me, curiosity

trying to steady my racing heart. "An old neighbor," I

316

Aws: From

don't

as I tremble, overwhelmed by the unexpected confrontation

packmates. The pain of their blows, both physical and emotional. The sinking realization that no one, not even our neighbors, would help me

know she's right, but it doesn't stop the flood of emotions. Fear, anger,

voice breaks through the

A few beats of my heart, slowing down. Meeting her concerned gaze, I give

me." She pauses, then adds, "Therapy isn't something to be ashamed of. If you're interested, just talk to me. Everything will be kept be Gratitude wells up

attention back to Selene, running my fingers through her soft fur. Her presence

From

of my

voice a gentle caress in my

me. "Strength? I'm shaking like

isn't the absence of fear, Ava. It's facing it head-on, even when it terrifies you. And that's