Tangled

168

168

168 Ava: Riot

It isn't impossible, but it might kill her before we get any results. Her answer isn't quite hesitant, but not firm, either.

"You're not telling me something

It is hard to explain. Selene stands and shakes herself. The only thing we can do is try. But it is a great risk. We should talk to Vanessa before trying, I think, if you wish to have her renounce her pack. As a heal That makes sense, only-

Selene and I share a startled glance as the chaotic noises from outside crescendo into a cacophony of snarls and shouts. Terror seizes my throat, memories of the party flashing through my mind, but I push pas We rush to the window, and my heart nearly stops at the sight below.

It's a full-on brawl. Wolves. Shifters in their human form. They're all locked together, dozens of Blackwood wolves overwhelming the few guards at the lodge.

Ava, we need to go. Selene's voice is sharp in my mind, urging me into action.

We race downstairs, my pulse pounding in my ears. There are no bodyguards to stop me; they're in the fray.

Fuck. I'm going to end up with twenty of them after Lucas hears

17-

17

abean chit

Marra winch rises above the din, his face a

mut of forty as he grapples with a narling wolf.

Telore I can respond, movement catches my eye. A Blackwood. Someone I vaguely recognize.

He launches at me, his body twisting and contorting as he shifts in

midair.

But Selene is faster. She meets the wolf head-on, and her snarl sends ice through my bones as she knocks him down.

I guess her body isn't very domestic dog, after all.

Chaos erupts around me. Claws and teeth flash past, barely missing me as I dodge and weave, my bodyguards struggling to form a protective

and the battling wolves. Snippets of conversation reach my ears, painting a grim

never going to submit-

mingles with dread in my gut.

voice is a lifeline,

she is. I

to help subdue the riot. Shouts of "traitor" and "bitch" assail

100 Avi Rest

her eyes

shricks, as guilt and terror freeze me for a second

my throat, squeezing, choking

off me, my hands moving to flip her to

the parking stop with a sickening

What

around me, the sounds of battle fading to a dull roar in my ears. I stumble back, my heart hammering against my ribs as I stare at the motionless body before

won't come, my lungs seizing in my chest as the reality of

Mason's mother. Just like I killed

Ava! Get it together!

before one

through the haze of shock threatening to consume me.

17.08.

377

at me. My body moves before my mind can fully process the danger, muscle memory from 1 sidestep the attack, grasping the wolf's foreleg as he passes. With a sharp twist, I use his own momentum against him, sending

against my ribs. Is he dead? Did I

ПЕР

Just

easier this time, knowing he's not dead by my hand. But the weight of Todd Mason's mother's lifeless body still

cuts through the chaos, and I whip around to see Clayton's massive wolf form bounding into the fray, flanked by several other wolves. Their arrival shifts the tide of the battle, the Blackwood wolves faltering

eye. A shadow in the distance, flickering at the edge of my vision. I squint, trying to make out what it is, but the darkness and the swirling mass Selene, I call out in my mind, my

see that?

immediate, laced with a mix of curiosity and wariness. I don't know what it is, but

4/7

108 Ava Ta

she can't see me. Let's

from the battle, darting toward

we draw closer, adrenaline surging through my veins. What

can't. ignore. Selene runs at my

the midst of

take shape, solidifying into a figure. A person, hunched over and stumbling, as if injured. My breath catches in