LOGINAvaThe first thing I heard was a low, tired voice, reading words I couldn't quite catch yet. My body felt heavy under the sheets, pinning me to the bed. I could hear the steady rasp of my own breathing. My open eyes blinked dryly in the dim light.I opened my eyes wider. A small, pale room with a c
AvaDad let go of the shackle and sat back, his face relaxing from the concentration. He was quiet for a long moment. Then his eyes met mine."Baby," he said gently, "do you want to know what happened?"Something in his tone made my chest tighten. I had a feeling that this was a truth I wasn't ready
AvaHe stepped out of the blackness, edging closer, until I could finally see him. Unbelievable. He was so young, the age he was when...when he died. His warm brown eyes, both of them, looked at me with a fond smile.I stared, my mouth hanging open, unable to make a sound. My dad. Standing in front
LeviI settled into the chair by her bed and took her hand in mine, rubbing my thumb over the back of it. "Hey, Ava. It's Levi," I said, trying to keep my voice steady. "I just talked to Sofia. We had some things to say to each other."I sat there, rubbing her hand, trying to find the words Maya and
LeviI sat with my father in his room, a week after Hilda's funeral. Some families had already packed up and left the pack after becoming human. Others had stayed, unsure of where else to go.My father wheezed beside me, the hiss of his oxygen tank an ever-present sound now. He was thinner, frail, h
MayaI zipped Sofia's dress as best I could with my good hand. The collar was tricky. I fiddled clumsily with the small metal fastening. "There, perfect," I said, releasing the dress and stepping back.Sofia blinked hard at her reflection in the mirror. Her hair was pulled back in a neat bun. The dr
EvelynThe morning after, everything was too bright. Sunlight hit the glass at the far end of the hallway and staggered through every shadow that dared linger, as if daring the house to pretend nothing had changed.I stood in the gray rectangle of Thomas's door, one hand on the frame, letting my bod
AvaHe lifted my chin with two fingers, not rough but clear enough to get my attention. “Yes, it did. But you’re not cursed, Ava. You’re just exactly where you should be given what you’ve been through.”He let my chin go, then steadied me with a hand on my elbow. “Now you have to figure out what’s n
Falco sat down on the grass, patted the spot next to him. I hesitated, then joined him. The ground was cool through my dress, damp from yesterday's rain."Here's the thing," he said, staring up at the sky. "The wolf's not your problem. The anger is. And until you figure out how to deal with it witho
AvaIt had rained overnight, and someone had tried to tidy the garden before the service, but it still smelled like wet stone and the old roots that never came out no matter how much you weeded.The ground near the east fountain was raw and scraped, black soil against the green in a way that made it







