Unshift 211
Unshift 211
211 Ava: Bringing Trouble to the Pack
There's a simple text on my phone, from an unknown number.
[UNKNOWN: Come to Dakota Sanctuary. We have a place for you. Now that you've unlocked your power, you're a danger to everyone around you.]
"Is everything okay?"
Marcus' eagle eyes must have noticed the blood draining from my face.
I don't want to lie to him, but I don't know how much he should
know about the situation.
Then again, the man's my bodyguard.
How can he effectively guard me if he doesn't know what's going
on?
Tell Lucas, Selene says, sounding grim.
I will. "This text. Probably the same as the unknown call from before." Handing Marcus my phone, I watch as his face zones out to inform Kellan or Jericho of the situation. Or both of them. Probably both. My gaze flicks to the book, but the words that had appeared moments ago are gone, leaving only those illegible runes once again. The cryptic message lingers in my mind, unsettling in its implications.
I don't like this, Ava, Selene says, her voice laced with concern. It feels like we're being herded into something.
17:38
211 Ava: Bringing Trouble to the Pack
The thought of being manipulated, of being led down a path I didn't choose, brings nothing but unease
What are our choices right now? I ask, hating the tremor in my mental voice. If my power really is a danger to everyone around
me...
I trail off, not wanting to finish that thought. The idea that I can hurt the people I care about, that my mere presence could put them at risk, is a heavy weight on my chest.
I've already hurt so many people.
But leaving isn't an option.
So what the fuck am I supposed to do?
It feels like I'm being forced into making a bad decision. There has. to be another way, right? Like Vanessa said-I was always thinking in black and white. So, now I need to find gray. Or orange. Or whatever other color it could possibly be.
Somehow.
Lucas' face flashes through my mind, and I can already imagine his reaction to this new development. Can he really keep me safe from my own power? Can I keep him safe?
The Unregistered city is an unknown, Selene says. We need to talk
someone we
we have is
her.
necessarily trust her, either-but I
17.38
2/7
Trouble to the
a concern, Selene admits, though I can
Her concern mirrors mine.
on, we were ready to take so many risks.
warning
After the vampire attacks?
She's learned caution.
So have I.
clears his throat, drawing my attention. "Kellan and Jericho are on their way," he says, handing the phone back to
and Jericho will know what to do. They'll have a plan. They have
others to do your work for
nothing
in the past have led to
successfully found freedom
Did I?
Mrs. Elkins' arrival, it's been a niggling doubt in
Did I find freedom?
was it the first stage of someone's grand
317
Ava: Bringing Trouble
but I can tell she's
place where the laws of the world don't. apply. Where vampires and other creatures roam unchecked. The
And Lisa's already there.
been there
could go. I could
have the training, and I'm... what, some sort of exploding time bomb of magical
rushing in circles, making me dizzy with
+17
have to admit that Jessa was never one to panic. Phoenix, either. And my father? I don't think I've seen him at any level past moderate concern in
Then there's me.
even figure out how to mend my relationship with a pack
Vanessa.
damage I had done until
isn't like your family realizes how
Ava. They're nothing but either. Don't
you,
flaws.
4/7
<
Ava: Bringing Trouble to the
easing the pressure in my chest.
would I ever look at my family as people to
been trained to,
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