Tangled

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181 Ava: Twenty Laps Around the Track

Muddy Blue Eyes turns back in my direction, and while I can't sense any sort of real respect or care, he at least reclaims a

professional air when he addresses me.

Before he can ask anything important, I have an odd, niggling little bug in my car from what he'd said a few moments ago. "Five miles around the track is twenty laps?" I ask, with a faint frown. 1-what? His confusion is clear in his wrinkled brow and hesitation. "Yes. Twenty laps."

"Not twelve?"

"No. It's twenty. Four laps to a mile

My memory is very clear of my torture during training, and I know that can't be right. "Jericho told us to run five miles, and it was always twelve laps."

"Beta-Mentor Ashbourne?" Muddy-Blue Eyes looks astonished, his brows rising. "Only twelve laps? Are you sure?"

"Positive. He had us count them. The memory of my jello-legs after each lap have me shuddering. "It was torture."

"Torture? She's been blessed by the Moon Goddess for his favor, and she calls it torture," Muddy-

Blue Eyes' partner mutters, looking out the window and bringing his hand to his lips in a gesture of faith I've seen often in Westwood, but almost never in Blackwood. It's always the older wolves who do it. "Pertaps Beta Mentor Ashbourne

oft on newbies? I suggest

soft

and Muddy Blue Eyes shakes his head in a firm negative. Then ! pause, rolling that name over in my head. "Wait. Ashbourne... isn't that Kellan's family name?

"Beta Mentor Jericho is Beta Kellan's father, Muddy Blue Eyes confirms. "When he stepped down as beta to focus on training young wolves, Beta Kellan took his place."

Ah.

The odd feeling between them now makes sense. It doesn't seem like a favorable father-son connection, somehow.

"I see." In a few minutes, I've learned more about the man who spent ages training me and Lisa for hours every day than I did. when he was training us.

Another eye-opening experience.

run the full five miles-while Lisa and I bemoaned every mile, thinking we were really running five miles- I rub

man's ranking in my heart rises

miles might have actually

kind," I say after a while, realizing both men seem

the bed. It seems their constant presence has been replaced with these two, which somehow makes everything worse.

These two...

seen them before. I know they've guarded

more than once.

even

walking to the window and peering outside. "Kind isn't a word anyone

Mentor.

Kind is

it's there, hidden in his gruff words and demands

other. Neither of them say

Something's happening. Maybe they'll explain it when

mean to; my fingers have been fiddling with them for a while, and my skyrocketing anxiety brought it to a new level.

But my stomach is churning, acid eating through its lining as we

seems to be done talking, I lean

"What's going on?"

and shakes his head. "No one's injured. that's what

Well, that's good

doesn't answer

on edge, taking station on either end of the room Muddy Blue Eyes stays near the

pause.

someone approaches. It must be the new guards, because he shares a few quick words before closing it again, and their footsteps

is tense.

Whatever happened-it's significant.

press, unable to ignore the palpable

the door finally speaks up, his words

heart lurches in my chest. "How is that even

Selene shifts beside me, her hackles raised, sensing the unease permeating

room.

This

grim words only give me the urge

they possibly want with the

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