177 Ava: epting Her Pack
During the few funeral rites Alpha Renard held in ckwood, he spent a lot of time pontificating. Especially during the rites for h
sons.
Here, Lucas says nothing. Does nothing. Only stands there, his arms crossed over his chest, as he watches the pyres burn.
The amount of human bodies decreases as they all take to their wolf forms, standing and waiting. When I nce at Ken, I can see that unfocused look in his eyes.
Lucas must be talking through the pack link.
That''s why it''s quiet.
There are wolves to either side of him, and I don''t recognize any them. Then again, I know very few members of the pack.
I''d chafed over that, used it as an excuse to go to the party. But how much effort had I made to get to know these people? At every turn, I felt stifled by their regard for me as Lucas'' mate. Did I ever engage the
If I can''t even get to know the bodyguards sent to keep me safe at the cost of their own lives...
What kind of person doesn''t even try, and justins about herck of freedom? a
If I had gotten to know them, perhaps things would be different.
17:44
177 Ava epting Her Pack
Instead ofining that I couldn''t go anywhere without them, maybe outings would have been fun with them. Maybe the other pack members would have seen me trying to be friends...
Ah.
All those people watching me during training take on a different meaning in my head now.
Who would wee an aloof wolf into their midst, knowing she''s made no effort to assimte into the pack?
My whining is a sour taste in my mouth, especially knowing that some of those people have now lost their lives because of me.
Despite understanding the tragedy, despite feeling terrible over the loss of life and injuries, I''d never once put a single one of their lives as a priority. I''d focused instead on Lisa.
They deserve more from us, Selene murmurs, sitting beside me with her ears t against her skull. I once led my pack. I would
have never...
Her words trail off in confusion once more, and I stroke a hand.
over her head without looking down.
Without breaking eye contact with those burning pyres and the smoke covering the sky in a dense, gray-ck cloud.
I cannot sacrifice this pack to save Lisa, I whisper back, feeling the tears filling my eyes once more. We cannot lose more people. I don''t know what to do. I don''t know what''s right. But I know that this... This was wrong.This text is property of N?/velD/rama.Org.
Selene stiffens. Ava.
20
The warning in her voice catches me off guard. She''s no longer starring toward the bodies burning in front of us. She''s staring into the forest, her ears pricked forward and body tense.
What is it?
Selene lifts her murale, her nostrils ring as she scents the air. I''m not sure. It seems familiar, but wrong
Kellen doesn''t seem to notice anything. No one here does, and they''re all in their wolf forms now.
Only Lucas, Ken, and I remain in our human forms.
Lucas'' eyes connect with mine from across the clearing, his amber eyes fiery as they reflect the light of the burning pyres.
That fated bond between us is a warm weight, afort in my chest, even through the guilt.
Tapping Ken''s arm. I wait until his eyes meet mine. Not wanting to cause panic with words, I jerk my thumb toward Selene, still alerting to something off in the distance.
He takes in her bodynguage and turns in the same direction with
frown. before that familiar, unfocused look hits his eyes once. again.
A wolf breaks away from the pack in that direction.
They''re checking on it. I assure Selene, but I can hear her mental
hine, as if she''s struggling not to run over there herself.
You can go, too. I offer to her, but she presses her body against my shins, even as she continues to stare in the distance.
No They might focus on my scent instead
117 Ava enting Her Pack
Ah, I hadn''t thought of that. It isn''t like every member of the pack is attuned to Selene''s scent.
Lucas shifts into his massive wolf,rger than any of the others. His fur is so dark it''s nearly ck, but the flickering light of the funeral pyres highlights the deep brown undertones.
He lifts his muzzle to the sky as thest vestiges of twilight fade into the oing night. A howl rips from his throat, deep and mournful, the sound vibrating through my chest.
One by one, the other wolves join in thement until the entire area echoes with their song of grief and loss. Tears streak down my cheeks, but I make no move to wipe them away. The weight of the lives lost se As the fires continue to burn, several wolves break from the pack and lope into the forest.
"Many will spend the night in their wolf forms," Ken murmurs in my ear, his voice taut with tension. "A pack hunt to honor the
fallen."
I nod to show I heard him, but my eyes are locked on Lucas'' wolf. He stares back
at me, his amber eyes glowing in the flickering light. The bond between us pulses, and I want nothing more than to go. to him, to bury my face in his fur and share in his grief.
But Selene tenses beside me, a low whine escaping her. Ava, we should get in the car.
She sounds troubled, her ears still pricked towards the forest. Before I can even respond, Lucas bolts. His powerful legs propel him forward at a monstrous pace as he races in the direction. Selene had been scenting.
"Ava, get in the car. Now! Ken barks, shoving me none-too-gently towards the vehicle.
Chaos erupts, snarls and growls that sound far too vicious for simple hunt. Fear ws at my throat. Another fight? "What''s happening?"
They caught the scent of a vampire." Ken practically throws into the backseat before jumping behind the wheel. "They''re o
hunt.".
As we peel away from the scene, I twist in my seat to stare out back window at the zing pyres lighting the sky. The wolves a gone, vanished into the dark forest.
A vampire? Here?
Margot''s warning ms into me, and I curse myself for not remembering sooner. "Ken, Margot mentioned something abo a vampire at ckwood when she bulldozed her way to my room I''m sorry. I was so f Ken curses under his breath and pulls out his phone, punching i a number. "Vester? Is everything okay there? Any sign of a vampire?" He''s silent for a moment, listening. "Alright, keep me updated."
He ends the call and nces at me in the rearview mirror. "Vester says everything is peaceful in ckwood, but he''s sending his men out. You think the bloodsucker followed you here?"
My heart sinks like a stone.
1 Avec Aconiting Her Pack
"I don''t know," I admit, hating how little information I have to giv "I got the impression it was a vampire that had business with ckwood, not necessarily one associated with the Mad Prince.
Ken''s brows shoot up. "How do you know about the Mad Princ I stumble over my words, not sure how much to exin. Only Lucas knows about Sister Miriam, and my instinct is to keep everything a secret st But that doesn''t seem right.
It''s Ken. He wants Lisa back as much as I do. He''s kept me safe : all costs. He was there when Lucas pulled me out of my parents''
home.
I can''t stop holding everyone at a distance. He''s an ally I can lean on. Just like Vanessa tried to exin to me.
"It''s a long story, but there''s a vampire who was working with ckwood. The one who sent the letter here. Sister Miriam? I met
with her, and she told me that the Mad Prince is the one who took
Lisa."
Ken grunts. "That exins the lead Lucas brought me."
We''ve reached the alpha lodge. Ken parks the car and turns to face me fully, his face grave.
"Ava, I know you''ve fought being brought here before, but we weren''t prepared-"
"It''s fine. I''m not going to fight you guys anymore." I meet his gaze with more confidence than I feel, as my heart tremors in my chest.
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372 Ava epting Her Pack
"Our pack has lost too many lives because I was being stubborn. I never want that to happen again."
He watches me in silence before giving a sharp nod. "Good. I''m going to hunt down this motherfucker. You''ll have two guards with you in the room, two outside, and several more in the area. Don''t do anything u you don''t leave your room. Do you understand?"
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