Tangled

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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.

parents, tired of

watching.

step back. "You're sorry?" Anger surges through me, hot and bitter, fueling my words. "Why are

She grabs at my arm again. "We

Ah. She needs something.

No wonder she's here.

was genuine. It's dead now,

head. "I am hired

From

So many of us are separated now. Taken from our mates. Forced to cut ties with the alpha. Westwood is tearing us apart. They sh "No." My voice is cold as I take another step

intention of helping you or anyone

her features twisting into an ugly mask of rage. "You ungrateful

her hackles. raised, teeth bared. She positions herself between Margot and me, a living

might actually shift and attack. My heart pounds against my ribs, adrenaline

She

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

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

swallow hard, trying to steady my racing heart. "An

316

Aws: From

I don't hear her.

nuzzling against me as I tremble, overwhelmed by

and taunts of my packmates. The pain of their blows, both physical and emotional. The sinking realization that no one, not even our

emotions. Fear, anger, betrayal-they

through the chaos. "Are

heart, slowing down. Meeting her concerned gaze, I give the

in her eyes. "I'll be 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

Selene, running my fingers

Ava: From

edges of my

a gentle caress in my mind. But you handled it

escapes me. "Strength? I'm shaking

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