Tangled

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179 Ava: Surprise Visit

Selene lies curled in a patch of moonlight, her head resting on her tail, eyes closed. Her presence usually brings me comfort, but even she can't soothe the anxiety that grips me now.

The room feels more like a prison than a sanctuary, the air thick with unspoken animosity. I glance out the window again, searching the darkness for any sign of movement, any indication that Lucas and the oth Nothing, of course.

They're miles away.

Their howls fill the air, raising the hair on my arms and the back of my neck.

It takes time, Selene murmurs, her eyes still closed as she basks in the moonlight.

She looks as relaxed as can be, but the edge in her mental voice tells me otherwise.

The knot in my stomach refuses to unravel. It's the same feeling I had before the attack on the party, a sense of impending doom that crawls beneath my skin and sets my nerves on edge.

The two shifters standing guard don't help matters. They're strangers to me, with unfamiliar faces and rigid stances. The tension in the room is palpable. I can't bring myself to attempt conversation, not when ev

1. me.

Minutes drag by, and nothing changes.

No updates.

Only the occasional cough from the guard with short hair and a scat under his left eye.

By the unfocused look that comes over their faces here and there, I know they're listening in to the hunt. They know something.

My thoughts keep circling back to Lucas and the others out there. hunting the vampire. The not knowing is torture, my imagination conjuring up increasingly horrific scenarios with each passing second.

Unable to bear it any longer, I turn to the shifters, my words tight with barely restrained panic. "Any updates on the vampire?"

cold brown eyes, regards me with open disdain. "Why do you

flinch as if he'd struck me. Heat rushes to my cheeks, a mixture of embarrassment and indignation. "I'm worried people will get hurt tonight," I manage to say, my voice The second shifter grabs his companion's arm, shaking his head

where Selene would normally tell me to stand up for myself and not let them treat me like this, but

she feels the treatment

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LIM ANG PHuman Vel

suddenly startling me in the silence. I'm only quiet because I'm thinking things

Oh.

Was I wallowing again?

Yes.

Damn it.

feel very com The acrid scent of cigarette smoke wafts through the air as the tall guard lights up, filling the room with a haze. My nose wrinkles in distaste. "Could you please not smoke in here?" I ask, trying to keep my tone He looks at me with disdain, taking a long

elbows him sharply in the ribs, hissing under his breath.

sneer twisting his features. "She's not even our

the air from my lungs. I know I'm

vampires were only there for her,"

119 Ave Sorpice Vist

his chin

like that? Questions swirl in my mind, but before I can voice them, both guards suddenly collapse to the ground,

figure materializes out of

tall guard's limp fingers. Taking a long drag, she regards the unconscious man with a look of disdain

wince at the sound, even as a small, vindictive part of me whispers that he deserves

Miriam turns to me, an apologetic smile on her face. "Sorry for the dramatic entrance, my dear. But I come bearing a warning." Selene is on her feet now, hackles raised as she positions herself between "Oh,

able to see past the nose on your face. Ava, you'll be pleased to hear that

look human. "Never you mind. It

170 AweSurprise Visi

still throws me off kilter, and I don't

feel about her. Friend?

"How did

the toe of her glossy black pump at the lighter that fell to