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
LeviMy hand was wrapped around Sofia's wrist.She'd been reaching for my zipper and I'd grabbed her without thinking. Now we were frozen there—her straddling my lap, half-naked, staring down at me with confusion starting to shift into something harder."What?" she asked.I couldn't answer. The word
HildaThey came for me maybe twenty minutes after Alexander limped out. They kicked the door open.Lyra was on her hands and knees scrubbing his blood off the floor. The bucket beside her was already more red than water. She'd been at it a while—I could see the streak marks where she'd tried to get
Another laugh. This one aimed at himself."Then one day I was driving through Riverbound territory. I felt charitable. Decided to stop at this pack's orphanage. They were struggling—packs falling apart, members leaving, kids abandoned." He shifted in his chair. "I wanted to help. Write a check, feel
More silence. Then Kathleen Torres spoke. "What kind of help specifically?" "Manpower. Resources. Coordination. A show of unified strength." "And if we do this," Garrett Holloway said slowly, "if we commit resources to this... confrontation... and it goes badly, we've weakened ourselves for no







