Page 2 of Healer’s Reckoning (The Healer’s #3)

Cha pter 2

Ava

Her voice snaps me from my trance. I spin on my heel and start walking away. “Ava, wait.” I pause, only because this is Rose’s special night, and I don’t want to be a jerk and ruin it for her.

I try to soften my voice as much as possible. “This was an awesome night, Rose. Go celebrate. Enjoy it. I am so happy for you.”

Her teary gaze meets mine. “You mean that?”

Her words take me by surprise. “Of course I mean it. You’re my best friend; I’m so happy for you.”

Her smile widens. “You’re my best friend too. I just thought you didn’t like Mav.”

I take a moment to choose my words carefully. “I like how he is with you. I can see that he truly loves you, and you love him.” My words seem to do the trick because she beams at me before throwing her arms around me.

“Thank you for coming! I’m so glad you were here for this!”

I hug her and then step back. “Go find your mate and celebrate.”

Her eyes dance. “I will.”

When she turns around, I beat feet out of there. I don’t want to deal with Bryce tonight, and I certainly don’t want to deal with whatever that mess was with that other guy. I don’t even know who he is. In the craziness and chaos, I manage to escape to my room and lock the door and quickly change into pajamas. My goal is to be in bed with the lights out long before anybody comes looking for me, especially a certain alpha. I brush my teeth as quickly as I can and then jump into bed and turn off the lights. A little while later, I hear voices outside my door and work to keep my breathing even and deep. Shifters have insanely good hearing. After a moment, the voices move away; and I breathe a sigh of relief and snuggle deeper into my covers, relishing my victory. I have once again avoided any kind of interaction with the alpha.

Sleep takes a while to find me, and I curse myself for taking such a long nap. It doesn’t help that my mind keeps returning to the events of the night. When I finally do fall asleep, it’s fitful. The last time I look at my phone, it’s after three in the morning.

I wake to the sound of someone banging on my door. I groan and roll over. When the knocking doesn’t stop, I finally begin the process of untangling myself from my sheets. I stand up and trip on my way to the door, pushing my hair out of my face as I go. “I’m coming.” I grab the door and yank it open. “What?”

“Whoa, Chica, how are you not up by now? It’s after ten.” Raechel waltzes past me and into my room before I can stop her. Emma gives me an apologetic smile. I step back, allowing the alpha’s mate entrance. “Man, I thought I slept late.”

“Is there a reason you’re here?” I ask Raechel pointedly.

“Mother Hen here wanted to check on you,” she says with a nod at Emma.

Emma shakes her head. “Oh, good grief.”

“Well, as you can see, I’m perfectly whole,” I tell them, nodding at the door.

“We just wanted to make sure you were okay after last night,” Emma says in concern.

“I’m good.”

“And we wanted to let you know that we’re going to get to the bottom of whatever is going on with Jackson,” Emma continues.

“Yeah, what was that?” Raechel asks, rounding on me. When somebody knocks on the door, Raechel doesn’t even miss a beat. “Come in.”

The door opens, revealing Rose. “Hey.”

“Wow, we didn’t think we’d see you; figured you wouldn’t leave your bed all day,” Raechel says suggestively.

Rose’s cheeks pinken, but she ignores the comment. “Hey, Ava. Are you okay? That was a lot last night.” I resist the urge to groan out loud. Rose looks around the room and frowns. “Where’s Sam? I thought she was coming here.”

Raechel snorts. “Wyatt’s probably got her up against a wall somewhere.”

“Raechel!” Emma says with another shake of her head.

“What? You know I’m totally right.”

“Anyway,” Rose interjects. “They’re going to keep a tight watch on Jackson and not let him near you.”

“Why did he go after Ava?” Raechel asks.

“Garrett and Cade and the others are trying to still figure things out. In the meantime, they’ll keep him away from you,” Emma tells me.

“How do we know I’m not his mate?” I ask.

Raechel smirks. “Don’t let Bryce hear you say that.”

“Why not?” I ask, irritated. “How do we know I’m his mate?”

Raechel lifts an eyebrow. “You obviously didn’t see the white wolf last night that nearly ate Jackson.”

I shake my head, trying to clear it. “I don’t really care. I’m not going to be anybody’s mate, so it doesn’t really matter.”

Raechel laughs, and it annoys me. “What?” I snap.

Her eyes dance with laughter. “Nothing. I just remember being in the same place you are once. It’s called de-ni-al.”

“The other reason we came to your room,” Emma says, obviously trying to calm the escalating tension. “...is that we wanted to tell you about tonight.”

“Tonight?” I question.

“Oh yeah. We’re going hibachi-ing,” Raechel says.

“I don’t think that’s a word,” Rose points out.

Rae shrugs. “Well, that’s what we’re doing.”

Unsure why they’re telling me, I aim to be polite. “Well, that’s nice. Have fun.”

“I think you missed the point, Chica,” Raechel says, slipping her arm around my shoulder. “You’re going with us.”

“No, I’m not.”

“Yes, you are,” Raechel counters. “Tell her, Mama Wolf.”

Emma shakes her head; she does that a lot around Raechel. “Everybody’s going.” She doesn’t have to say it; I can tell by how she said it that it’s mandatory.

Great. Just what I need. A pack outing.

“It’s a little drive from here, so we have to leave at three,” Emma says, oblivious to my inner temper tantrum.

“How far is it?” I ask.

“A little over two hours.”

“Why are we going so far?” I ask.

“It’s supposed to be this amazing hibachi place,” Raechel says, her eyes aglow. “And wait for it....they have a dessert and coffee bar!”

Knowing that if Garrett wants everybody to go, I won’t be able to get out of it, I don’t even bother trying to weasel my way out of it. “Okay, I’ll be ready at three.” I wonder if I’m going to have to ask them to leave, but thankfully Rose gets them moving.

“Okay, we’ll get out of your hair.”

Raechel and Emma say goodbye and leave. Rose steps out as well but stops me right before I close the door. “You okay, Ava?” she asks quietly.

“I’m fine,” I tell her automatically.

“I know you’re a private person, but if you ever want to talk, you know I’m here.”

My heart softens. “Yeah, I know. Thanks.”

I close the door behind her and close my eyes and pinch my nose. That was not how I saw my morning going. My stomach growls, motivating me to get moving. After a long, hot shower, I feel better. I throw on my pair of ripped jeans and a faded gray sweatshirt. I run my fingers through my damp hair and stare at myself in the mirror for a moment. I stare at my eyes, that look almost normal these days. They’re more green than they used to be; they sort of change with the day. That’s all courtesy of the vampires’ lingering effects on me. I eye my blond hair critically; there’s no life to it. I haven’t done a whole lot with it lately; I haven’t felt like it. My skin is unnaturally pale, also courtesy of the vampires. I squint my eyes and try to see the version of me that was…before. Before the vampires destroyed my life. I have a hard time seeing that girl; I haven’t been her in a really long time. I turned twenty-one a few weeks ago, but I feel like I’m eighty some days. I sigh and push away from the sink; I don’t need painful memories flooding my mind today. I throw my hair up in a ponytail before threading it through the back of my ballcap. After putting on makeup and earrings, I pocket my phone and head toward the dining hall. I’m about halfway there when I see the guy from last night, Jackson. I pause, ready to head back to my room. He puts his hands up. “I’m not going to hurt you. I just want to talk to you.”

I really don’t want to talk to him, but I also don’t want to make a scene. “Fine. Talk.”

He walks toward me, and I resist the urge to back up. He takes a deep breath, and I look down the hallway. There’s nobody nearby, but that doesn’t mean people won’t hear if I call for help. Shifters have impeccable hearing, and I’m surrounded by them. “There’s just something about you.” He narrows his eyes. “I don’t understand.”

“What is it that you don’t understand?” I ask, crossing my arms across my chest.

“Hey,” a voice calls out from behind me. “You were given a direct order not to approach the female.”

“The female has a name,” I tell the new guy I don’t recognize. I turn back to talk to Jackson, but he’s long gone. I throw up my hands. “And now he’s gone.” I whirl back around to the guy that interrupted. “And who exactly are you?”

The guy’s obviously a shifter. He has the good looks, height, and muscle of one; this one’s got dark hair and an even darker sense to him. “Hunter.”

“I’m Ava,” I tell him.

“I’m well aware.” I arch a brow at him, not really sure how to take that.

“Well, thank you, Hunter, but I had that completely under control.”

He crosses his arms and levels a cool look at me. “You sure about that?”

My ire rises. “Well, it’s been an absolute pleasure meeting you, Hunter ,” I say without an ounce of warmth in my voice. Without waiting for a response from him, I take off down the hallway. After scanning the dining area quickly to make sure a certain alpha isn’t there, I make my way over to the serving counter and grab a sandwich and a water bottle and begin the commute back to my room. I make it almost to the exit when two males step inside, blocking my exit. Shoot. I quickly turn and start walking the other direction.

“Ava.”

Bryce’s voice stops me in my tracks. Stink. Stink. Stink. I was hoping he hadn’t seen me. Knowing there’s no way I can get away now, I paste a bored expression on my face and turn back around. “Bryce, I didn’t see you there.”

He stops just a few feet from me, and I fight the urge to take a step back. I always forget just how tall he is. I swallow. And how good-looking he is. With his blond hair, bright blue eyes, and tanned skin, he pulls off the surfer dude stereotype easily but with muscles. I force my face into a blank expression, but I can tell by the look on his face that he doesn’t believe my innocent act. “Ava, this is Hunter, my head enforcer,” he pauses before adding, “and friend.”

The way he says it, I gather that Hunter isn’t just a friend; he’s probably his closest friend. I close my eyes for the briefest second because...of course. Of course, Hunter is Bryce’s enforcer and friend. I open my eyes. “Nice to meet you, Hunter,” I say in my sweetest voice because I’m one hundred percent sure that he’s the reason Bryce is in front of me right now.

Hunter’s eyes narrow the slightest bit, but he plays along. “You as well.”

I take the two of them in; they’re both formidable as all get out. They stand shoulder to shoulder and are the exact same height. I realize belatedly that Bryce asked me a question. “What?”

He’s as patient as ever. “Did you hear about the plans for this evening?”

His words give me pause. “Raechel told me that the Northwoods Pack is going out,” I hedge. Please don’t say what I think you’re going to say.

Bryce’s lips shift slightly, like maybe he’s trying not to smirk. “They are.” The tension eases from my shoulders; that is, until his next words. “Hunter and I will be going with as well.” And just like that, the tension is back. “Would you like to ride with me?”

“Oh, no,” I say quickly. “I’m good; I have a ride.” The words tumble out quickly.

His lips do that thing again. “Do you now?”

I nod with as much assertiveness as I can manage. “Yes. So, I guess I will see you there.”

His lips twitch again. “Yes, I guess you will.”

Before he can say anything more, I sidestep the two of them and hightail it back to my room. By the time I get to my room, my heart is racing, and I’m no longer hungry.