Chapter 57

Ava’s POV

“This is all your fault,” Isabella spat at Rickon.

He scoffed back, barely audible. “How is it my fault? Did I poison the drinks?”

I barely heard him as I bolted after Eliza, who had darted into the parking lot after her outburst. My feet pounded the pavement as I chased her, my heart racing with frustration and fear. I didn’t know what she’d do, but fear pushes people to dangerous limits, and Eliza looked ready to snap.

I understood her terror. People fear what they don’t understand, and, if there were ever a time for gallows humor, I’d joke that people are especially afraid of anyone who can grow fur and claws on command.

Eliza dashed into the street, causing cars to honk and swerve as drivers shouted from their windows. She didn’t stop, but kept running. I cursed under my breath, weaving through the angry drivers in my wedding gown, calling, “Sorry! Sorry!” as I followed. Finally, she turned down an alleyway, and I pushed harder, exhaustion clawing at my limbs.

How far was she planning to run? Where was she even going? And how was she running so fast in heels?

The distance between us started to shrink, and I yelled, “Eliza, please stop! Let me explain!”

She didn’t. Then, by some stroke of luck, she reached a dead end and was forced to halt. I caught up to her, breathless. She spun around, grabbing something—what, I couldn’t tell—and held it out like a weapon, her hands trembling. “Don’t come near me, Ava, or I swear I’ll hit you!”

I took a step back, raising my hands. “Eliza, please, drop that. I’m not going to hurt you.”

“Not going to hurt me?” Her voice cracked; her eyes were wide and frantic. “I just saw that man grow fur! His fingers turned into claws; his eyes went black like a void. And Isabella’s eyes… they changed too. All of you—monsters. You’re all monsters!”

I forced myself to stay calm, though panic simmered beneath my skin. “Eliza, listen to me. I’ll explain everything. I promise. We’re… we’re werewolves. And I wish I had more time to ease you into this, but something terrible is happening in that wedding hall. More people are about to find out we exist, and the fear you’re feeling now? It’s going to spread. Please, put that down, come with me, and I’ll tell you everything later.”

She stared at me, wild-eyed, her chest heaving. “Werewolves don’t exist. This isn’t some damn horror novel, Ava. Werewolves aren’t real.”

“But we are.” I softened my voice. “Eliza, I’m still me. I’m still the same Ava. I don’t even have a wolf like the others. Be still, Bels. We’re just… us. No one here wants to hurt you.”

“I saw a man grow fur,” she shrieked, pulling at her hair. “Nothing is the same! This is insane! This has to be some messed-up dream. I need to wake up!”

She started slapping herself hard. “Wake up, Eliza! Wake up!”

“Eliza, stop it!” I snapped, harsher than I intended. “I don’t have time for this, and I don’t trust that you won’t do something reckless if I leave you alone. You’re coming back with me. Now.”

My words seemed to cut through her panic, grounding her. She stilled, her hands dropping to her sides. Her voice was almost a whisper. “Why… why do you people exist? How do you even exist?”

I sighed, trying to soften my tone, though urgency clawed at me. “I don’t know, Eliza. Nature, maybe? Look, just please, come with me. I’ll answer every question you have afterward, I swear. My parents made me read a hundred books on werewolf history growing up. Whatever you want to know, I’ll tell you.”

She searched my face, and for a moment, I saw the old Eliza—the friend I’d reconnected with. Finally, she nodded, though her grip tightened around the strange object in her hand. “Fine. But I’m keeping this. Whatever it is.”

“Fair enough.”

She moved toward me cautiously, keeping a few feet of distance. We made our way back to the street. I could feel her unease, the distrust radiating from her. I scanned the area, cursing inwardly. I didn’t have my phone to call Isabella. Running back was out of the question: I was drained, and time was slipping away.

I turned to her. “Do you have your phone?”

She shook her head, her expression stricken. “No. I… I don’t even know where it is right now. And Grayson is probably plotting a hundred different ways to fire me in the most brutal way possible.” Her eyes widened. “Wait. Grayson Blackwood—is he like you? Are all of you like… this?”

I cringed. Of course, this couldn’t be simple. “Yes. He is.”

“Oh God,” she muttered, pulling at her hair again. “This is… this is insane. I’m going to lose my mind.”

“Eliza, focus,” I said sharply. “We need to get back there. Remember?”

She blinked, and a flicker of clarity returned. “I have cash. We can get a cab.” She lifted the hem of her dress, revealing bills strapped to her leg. “My mom taught me to always be prepared for anything. Though she didn’t exactly prepare me for werewolves.”

“Thank the Goddess,” I murmured, relief flooding through me. I flagged down a cab as she untied the money, and after giving the driver the address, I urged him to hurry. He scanned me and the dress, but before he could comment, I urged him to hurry. Eliza kept her distance from me, pressed against the opposite door, her body tense. I tried not to let it sting.

After all, what else could I expect?

The drive felt endless. I could feel my anxiety simmering, growing heavier with each passing moment. When we finally arrived, chaos spilled from the hall—humans rushing out in every direction, panic on their faces. My heart sank.

“Stay close,” I told Eliza as I scrambled out of the cab. She nodded, reluctantly following. I scanned for Isabella or Rickon, but they were nowhere in sight. Cursing, I moved toward the back entrance with Eliza trailing behind; the sounds of shouting and scuffling grew louder.

The moment I stepped inside, my gaze locked onto Grayson, barking orders as more humans flooded out of the building. Wolves were scattered on the ground, coughing and heaving, but none of them had fully shifted.

Why hadn’t they turned?

Before I could move further, Grayson’s icy gaze snapped to me. His expression darkened; irritation tightened his jaw. Then Liam appeared, blocking my path with a low growl. “I thought I told you to get out of here.”

Ignoring him, I asked, “Why aren’t they shifting?”

A rough hand grabbed my arm, yanking me back, and I found myself face-to-face with Grayson’s intense, angry stare. His voice was a cold whisper, “What are you doing here?”

His eyes slid to Eliza, and his scowl deepened. “And you brought her?”

I pulled my arm free, matching his glare. “I just chased her through an alleyway because she saw Rickon almost shift. We’re on the verge of a full-blown exposure crisis, Grayson. I don’t think now is the time to argue.”

“Why were you with Rickon?” he growled, his jaw clenched.

“Are you serious? That’s what you’re worried about right now?”

Before he could respond, a voice floated through the chaos. “I know I still look stunningly beautiful, but I’m getting bored here. When are you saving the day, Grayson?” said a woman with a teasing smile, lounging with one leg propped on a table. She twirled a hand in the air as though this chaos was nothing more than a game.

Grayson’s expression didn’t soften, but he replied curtly, “Maria. She’s a witch and… an old friend. She’s using a spell to stop them from shifting.”

“You have friends?” I said, just as Eliza muttered in shock, “There are witches too?” Her voice trembled, reminding me she was still beside me.

He looked at me, his tone cold as ice. “I told you to stay out of this, Ava. Leave.”

I met his gaze, unflinching. “I know you don’t want me here, but I won’t sit back while we’re on the brink of being exposed. We need the antidote for wolfsbane to stop this madness. We just need to find enough, fast.”

“I know that,” he snapped, his jaw clenched. “I already have people retrieving all the antidote we have. Now, you need to leave.”

“I’m not going anywhere.”

A sly smile spread across Maria’s face as she interjected, her tone laced with amusement. “Aren’t you going to introduce me to the woman brave enough to put up with your grouchy attitude?” She cocked her head, eyes gleaming with a strange familiarity, as if she knew him well enough to get under his skin.

He exhaled, clearly irritated, and opened his mouth to respond, but Liam approached, cutting in with a grave expression. “We have an even bigger problem.”

Grayson’s eyes narrowed, a flicker of tension passing across his face. “What now?”

Liam’s gaze shifted, his voice low but urgent. “I just got a call from the men sent to get the antidote. It’s all gone. Someone broke into the warehouse and stole everything.”

A wave of dread slammed into my chest, my heart hammering as the reality of the situation settled in. Just when I thought it couldn’t get worse, Maria’s voice, now void of humor, added a final layer of tension.

“Grayson, I think we have a serious problem.” Her eyes darkened, her playful expression replaced by an unsettling intensity. “I don’t know what’s happening, but the spell is breaking. I can’t hold them back from shifting much longer.”