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.

my parents, tired

always watching.

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

us could help you. Please." She grabs at my arm

Ah. She needs something.

No wonder she's here.

to boil in my veins, even as my stomach churns. There's a tiny part of me, almost miniscule, that was hopeful her apology was genuine. It's dead now, like so many other little parts of "How

"I am hired to clean the lodge. I

From

are separated now. Taken from our

"I have no intention of helping you or anyone else. from that pack. Not after everything

features twisting into an ugly mask of rage. "You

into the room, her hackles. raised, teeth bared. She

might actually shift and attack. My heart

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

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

turns to me, curiosity etched on

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

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Aws: From

followed by sympathy. She starts to say something, but I don't hear her. I'm already sinking to my knees,

I tremble, overwhelmed by the

The jeers and taunts of my packmates. The pain of their blows, both physical and emotional. The sinking realization that no one, not even our neighbors, would help me Breathe, Ava, Selene murmurs in my mind. You're safe now. She can't hurt

Fear,

through the chaos.

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

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

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

Ava: From

edges of my

face that, she says, her voice a gentle caress in

me. "Strength? I'm shaking

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