Ava
It takes me a while to register what Aliana is saying. But when she pushes the words down our mind link, I finally
hear them.
“Mommy, stop. He won’t hurt us. It’s Daddy. He finally came.”
I look around at the pack of wolves surrounding us. We are outnumbered.
There was no way I could get us out of this. Dammit! I should never have ventured out. Now we are in this mess,
and the Black Death will kill us.
This delusion Aliana is under that the same man here to destroy us is her father is so far-fetched and unbelievable
that I don’t know where it comes from.
The Black Death once again draws my attention. I can now understand why he is called that. He is pitch black from
the tip of his nose to his tail.
The irony that he is the exact opposite of my wolf is not lost on me. In another life, we might even have been the
perfect match.
But I cannot imagine this man matched to anyone. He is all hatred and anger. But also sad. It hovers around him
like a sickness, and for a moment, I almost feel bad for him. Almost. Then, Jerry’s words come crashing down on
me and everything he said the Black Death would do to us.
The problem is that as he moves and the breeze swe eping through the forest picks up his scent, the way it makes me
feel when it drifts my way is so delicious. It's like the best thing I have ever smelled. My wolf wants to rub against
him, and it is taking everything in me not to act on that desire.
Desire that I can’t help taints my scent. I know he picks it up as he whines and then growls, the sounds appealing to
a primal part of my wolf that I have never experienced before.
The Black Death dips his head toward one of his unshifted guards carrying a backpack, who drops it behind a tree
nearby. With one look that almost warns me not to make a move, he disappears behind it. Minutes later, he
reappears, shifted, and dressed in grey joggers and a black T-shirt.
Clothes that accentuate everything on a man like this. Wolf form or human form, he is still big and intimidating.
“Ava, it's me.” The familiarity of his voice and a name I do not know washes over me in a way that makes me long
for a time I do not remember.
A time that does not exist.
Ava. For some reason, that name suits me better than the one I was born with. I cringe thinking that.
“She doesn’t know that name. Her name is Avril.” Black Death’s face softens when he looks at the little girl
holding onto my white fur. And then I swear I see an emotion I have sometimes seen on my face in the reflection of
a mirror when I think of Aliana. Love. But that is impossible.
“And your name?” He takes a st ep toward us slowly and with his palms up.
“My name is Aliana.” My daughter smiles at the man like he is a hero.
“That’s a beautiful name for a beautiful girl. How old are you, Aliana?”
Black Death takes another slow st ep in our direction, his nearness bringing with it his scent. It's so delicious and so
familiar.
“It’s my birthday today. I am three! Look, Mommy bought me this new dress and these shoes.” Aliana lets go of
my fur and twirls around, her curly black hair spinning in the wind while she smiles happily, unaware of how
dangerous this situation is for us. While pups grow and mature quicker than human children, I am reminded in this
moment of just how small my little girl still is. How shielded she has been from the world. Especially with us living
out here with minimal outside contact. Could this be why she was so freely telling the Black Death things that I
doubted he cared about? And yet, when I look at him, he intently listens to her like he cares what she has to
say—luring her in with some false charm or something.
“Don’t tell him anything, Aliana. Remember what Daddy said.”
Aliana stops spinning and then frowns, her hands fisting at her side.
“Jerry isn’t my daddy. He is,” Aliana says, pointing to the man looking at my daughter with so much affection I
almost think he believes this nonsense, too.
“He cannot be, Aliana. We have never met before.”
Before she can respond, the man who is now properly invading my senses as he takes yet another st ep towards us,
speaks.
“Tell your mom to shift. We need to talk, and I cannot do it when she is like this. I promise I won’t hurt you. Either
of you.” He looks at me as he says the last words. I don’t believe him, but what other option do I have?
There are too many of them. With Aliana still too young to shift, I would need to es cape when my chances were
better.
“She won’t shift here without clothes. But,” Aliana says excitedly before I can stop her, “our house is close. She
can shift there. And then I can show you my new teddy bear I got for my birthday!” She claps her hands together
and jumps up and down, her excitement even making the guard nearby smile.
“I would love to see your new teddy. Let's go. You lead the way.” The Black Death smiles at Aliana and then looks
at me expectantly. With a huff and a warning growl, I turn around and nudge Aliana toward our house. If the fact
that he wanted me dead wasn’t enough, my growling at the King of Werewolves would definitely not go
unpunished.
Great, if we survived this, we would have to move. That’s if I could get away.
“He found us, Mommy. Now I don’t need to go to a new school. We can go live with Daddy,” she whispers to me,
her small hand holding onto the fur of my leg.
“You don’t know what you are saying, little bean. This is a bad man, Aliana. You mustn’t trust him.”
Aliana shakes her head vigorously, clearly not acc epting what I am saying.
“You will see, Mommy. It’s Jerry. He is the bad man.”
The Black Death growls behind us, clearly overhearing Aliana and not liking what is said.
The walk to Georgia’s café seemed shorter than this stress-filled walk back home. Did she know about this? I think
back to all the times we went there, suddenly looking at things anew. All the glances between her and
Jerry. The way she always seemed nervous around him. Was it coincidental, or was there more to this than meets
the eye? I always just trusted Jerry, but could there be something here that I was not seeing?
I shiver thinking about it and then set the thought aside because it just couldn’t be possible.
When our little house comes into view, I am both elated and sad. Aliana and I had created memories here. This was
our home. And now we would undoubtedly need to leave. Where would we go? And what would Jerry do?
I wonder if he knows what is happening. Maybe he will send help. He would definitely come looking for us.
I’m so wrapped up in my thoughts that before I know what is happening, Aliana has let go of my fur and is running
up to the Black Death, who is a mere couple of st eps behind us. My heart nearly stops, and the fur on my back rises
as my motherly instincts kick in. The Black Death is enamored, looking at her like she is the most interesting thing
he has ever seen. And then she reaches up, innocent like a lamb, and wraps her hand around his forefinger and
middle finger, all that will fit in hers comfortably.
“Are you going to take us with you, Daddy?”
The Black Death smiles, melting under my daughter's big grey eyes, focused on him like a laser.
“Yes, I am. I am here to take you and Mommy home, back where you belong.” Aliana smiles and squeals, jumping
with excitement.
The Black Death smiles at Aliana. A smile that transforms his face. While it was handsome before, this is
breathtaking. Even Aliana stops jumping, her mouth dropping open in awe.
“Daddy. Your eyes. They are like mine,” she whispers, pointing to her eyes to reinforce her words.
His gaze shifts to me and roots me to the spot. It is like looking into a mirror. His eyes are the same as Aliana's.
Exactly. A carbon copy.
And then, he says a word that sends a delicious shiver down my spine and evokes déjà vu so strong I whimper.
“Mine.”