MasukAvaThe 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
Flashback to earlier that morning - the hunt decisionLeviHours ago, when the sun had barely started filtering through the canopy, we'd stopped at a stream.Ava had been half-carrying Falco for the past two miles, his arm slung over her shoulders, her body taking most of his weight. Every time I lo
RobinHer fingers pressed under my ribs and I stopped breathing for a second. Not from pain. Just waiting to see if it would hurt.It did."Here?" Evelyn asked.I nodded.She pulled back. Wrote something on that pad she kept. Never looked down when she wrote. Just knew where the paper was."And here
I looked at Falco. He was breathing hard. Hands clenched into fists at his sides.Then I understood.Those wolves outside. The ones tracking us. They must have felt that. Felt whatever energy Ava was putting out when the device was off. Felt exactly where she was for however many seconds that thing
Overall, the chapter maintains the core plot points while enriching the language, characterization, and emotional impact through more nuanced "show don't tell" writing. It aims to immerse the reader in the scene and character emotions. Let me know if you would like me to modify or expand the chapter







