Tangled

Unshift 255

Unshift 255

255 Ava: The Golden Stranger

Light illuminates the room, and Marcus steps back, hiding me more fully behind his bulk.

"Who are you?" he asks, and I glance at the knife he's holding behind his back.

When I try to step around him to see who's talking, Vanessa steps forward to block the gap.

can't see anything, and yet I know who's talking. I just can't remember who they are.

"Easy, wolves. I am no enemy of yours, and no danger to the witch you shield."

"Give us your name, Vanessa snaps, uncharacteristic hostility in her tone. "Who are you, and why do you know us?"

"Ah, yes. I suppose you wouldn't know. I am known as Acarus, of the Fourth Beginning. You know my mother"

"Mother?" Marcus asks, shifting his weight as he edges a little closer. "And who might that be?"

"And what the hell is the Fourth Beginning?" Vanessa's annoyance is clear. "You can't throw around words and expect them to mean a thing."

"Oh. Yes, I suppose you wouldn't know that, either." A long pause. "Don't look at me so, wolves. My mother is Miriam, of the Fourth Beginning. Or, as you know it, Dakota Sanctuary. There's a lilt in his voice that tells me he's probably smiling. "Does that help?"

"Miriam?"

The talk of a mother dislodged a long-forgotten memory, and I shove past Marcus.

The golden stranger stands before us, his palms raised in a gesture of peace. His ethereal beauty. is just as striking as I remember-inhuman in its perfection. Golden hair catches the light, and those piercing blue eyes seem to shift to a crimson hue as they move. A mild smile plays on his lips, but it does little to ease the tension in the room.

Marcus and Vanessa tug me back, their protective instincts kicking in, but I shake them off as I

exclaim, "It's you!"

I turn to my friends, eager to explain. "He was in the woods during the Blackwood riot. He didn't harm me then."

Acarus nods in my direction, his gaze appraising. "You've become stronger since we last met, Ava

Grey."

A question that's been nagging at me since our first encounter bubbles to the surface.

+

Margot was talking about?"

across his perfect features. "I'm

warn me about it, right before I found you in the woods. It was so long ago, the details blur in my mind. "She was worried about something.

Ava: The Golden

tilts his head in thought. "That seems unlikely. I

curiosity, but before I can press further, he

don't you all come down for dinner? I'm

exchange wary glances. I can feel their hesitation, their distrust of this beautiful stranger who seems to know

I say, surprising myself with the conviction in my voice. If Sister Miriam is his mother, then he's

"He knows things he

our ally," I point

Marcus shakes his head,

his pot out.

near Blackwood before

That's too convenient

the bottom

His hand never strays far from his weapon. Vanessa

room. The entire house looks familiar, but it isn't

first place I met Sister Miriam. This one isn't quite the same, but it definitely has

one. And outside the windows is nothing but trees. Wherever we are, it

for the modest accommodations," he says, as if a huge table that can easily fit sixteen is not

in earthenware bowls. It's far from the claborate Fae meals we've grown accustomed to, but my

and Vanessa remain

Wait a second.

you know we would

chuckles, and even the sound is perfect. Melodious and deep,

nerves.

a seat at the head of the table. "I'll do my

the pointed

The

on either side of

be here? Second, you said Sister Miriam is your mother, I begin, unable to contain my curiosity any longer. "How is that possible? She never mentioned having children, and

"Mother can be selective with the information she divulges.

around the subject or promised to answer things later, much like Selene does-yeah, I'd

her biological son," he says, motioning for us to

Vanessa sit stoic, not tempted by the food. Though I'm pretty sure it's safe,

their lead.

has raised me since I was young. In every way that matters, she is my mother. Do

answers right now," Vanessa says, still suspicious. "How did you know

know exactly when you would arrive. I've been preparing a meal every day for weeks. He nods toward the food on the table. "At least this time I won't be

about the pigs, but I keep my mouth