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.

+

the vampire Margot was

flickers across his perfect features. "I'm afraid I don't

Blackwood lands. Margot came to 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.

The

"That seems unlikely. I

satisfy my curiosity, but before I can press further,

down for dinner? I'm sure

hesitation, their distrust of this beautiful stranger

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

eyes narrow. "He knows things he shouldn't,

our ally,"

Marcus shakes his head,

his pot out.

was near Blackwood

That's too convenient to be

intruded on my privacy," Acarus points out from the bottom of the stairs. "Come along. I made

his movements cautious as he descends the stairs. His hand

house looks familiar, but it isn't until I see the giant table that I realize

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

is nothing but trees. Wherever we are, it

modest accommodations," he says, as if a huge table

simple spread of bread, cheese, and what looks like a hearty stew steaming in earthenware bowls. It's far from the claborate Fae meals we've grown accustomed to, but

and Vanessa

Wait a second.

did you know

even the sound is perfect. Melodious

nerves.

a seat at the head of the table.

chair, ignoring the pointed looks from Marcus and Vanessa. They

Ava: The Golden

on either side of me

you know we would 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 vampires

can be selective with

all the times she's danced around the subject or promised to answer things later, much like Selene does-yeah,

am not her biological son," he says, motioning for us to partake

Vanessa sit stoic, not tempted by the food. Though I'm

their lead.

raised me since I was young. In every way that matters, she is my mother. Do you not

now," Vanessa says, still suspicious. "How did

exactly when you would arrive. I've been preparing a meal every day for

about the pigs, but I keep my mouth shut. More important