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

between me and the battling wolves. Snippets of conversation reach my

never going to submit-

and powerful. Clayton. Relief mingles with dread in my gut.

is a lifeline, anchoring

is. I can sense her in this

"traitor" and "bitch" assail

100 Avi Rest

my nightmares. Todd Mason's mother, her eyes wild with grief and rage as she lunges

she shricks, as guilt and terror freeze me for a second

hands close around my throat, squeezing, choking

on instinct. A twist, a shove, and she's off me, my hands moving to flip her to the

the parking stop with a sickening

God. What have I

in my ears. I stumble back, my heart hammering against my ribs as I stare at the motionless body before me. Ava. Selene's voice, distant and

seizing in my chest

Mason's mother. Just

Ava! Get it together!

before

of shock threatening to consume me. On your

17.08.

377

face the oncoming threat. Another Blackwood wolf, eyes blazing with hatred, lunges 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 him crashing to

Did I just kill another one? But then I see the faint rise and fall of his chest, and relief

ПЕР

bus. Just uncons

the guilt and horror of what I've done. It's easier this time, knowing he's not dead by my hand. But the weight

see Clayton's massive wolf form bounding into the fray, flanked by several other wolves. Their arrival shifts the tide of

rages on around me, something catches my eye. A shadow in the distance, flickering at the edge of my vision. I squint, trying to make

see that?

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

4/7

108 Ava Ta

even though she

from the battle,

through

forward, a gut instinct that I can't. ignore. Selene runs at my side,

the midst of

hunched