Tangled

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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.

for hours that day. Hours. Until my parents, tired of my whining,

always watching. Never

arm away, taking a step back. "You're sorry?" Anger surges through me, hot and bitter, fueling my words. "Why are you even saying that? What does that do for me

You have to understand, none of us could help you. Please." She grabs at my arm again. "We

Ah. She needs something.

No wonder she's here.

in my veins, even as my stomach churns. There's a tiny part of me, almost miniscule, that was hopeful her apology was

her head. "I am hired to clean the

Ava From the

pack. So many of us are separated now. Taken from our mates. Forced to cut ties with the

helping you or anyone else. from that pack.

contorts, her features twisting into an ugly

hackles. raised, teeth bared. She

the growl, her eyes flashing amber. For a moment, I think she might actually shift and attack. My heart pounds against my ribs, adrenaline surging through my

instantly. She straightens, smoothing her expression into one of

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

her go, then turns to me, curiosity etched on her face. "Who was

my racing heart. "An old neighbor," I manage,

316

Aws: From the

She starts to say something, but I don't

tremble, overwhelmed by the unexpected confrontation

sinking realization that no one, not even our neighbors, would help me Breathe, Ava, Selene murmurs

know she's right, but it doesn't stop the flood of emotions. Fear, anger, betrayal-they swirl inside me, a maelstrom threatening to pull

through the

of my heart, slowing down. Meeting

in the other room if you need 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 inside me, and I manage a shaky

attention back to Selene, running my fingers through her

Ava: From

edges of

sorry you had to face that, she says, her voice a gentle caress in my mind. But you

laugh escapes me. "Strength? I'm shaking like

Ava. It's facing it head-on, even when it terrifies you. And that's