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“I didn’t forget. I didn’t even tell you a certain time, so there’s no need to act like I’m late.” Hunter and Ava looked like they were about to start bouncing off the walls.
“You could say they’re a bit eager.” Brody sat on the end of the sofa, his head bent and tipped as he scribbled on a small sketchpad. The Glenwood pack’s new third in command was always drawing, something he’d been doing ever since he was a child. He’d managed to make it into a career as a tattoo artist, but even the art he got paid to do apparently wasn’t enough to satisfy his creative needs. “They haven’t stopped talking about it.”
“I’m just excited.” Ava grinned and looked toward the stairs. “Is Mom coming?”
Max hesitated. He didn’t want to see the inevitable disappointment on Ava’s face if she found out how Sarah felt about all this. She was smart and probably knew anyway, but Max wasn’t sure he could break her heart like that. “She’s going to stay here this time, but she said to have fun.”
“Okay. So can we go?” Ava popped up on her toes and bounced, full of energy.
Well, his excuse had certainly rolled off her back, but now Max felt guilty for lying to her. He’d have to get that settled later. Ava might be more capable of handling the truth once she’d learned to be comfortable in both her skin and fur. “Yeah, let’s go.”
When they reached the back of the yard, Max purposely led them off to the left so they’d take a different path than the one they’d been on the first time they’d tried. There was no guarantee that Ava would successfully shift, and he didn’t want one certain section of the territory to make her feel like a failure.
Brody stepped up the front. He turned around and walked backward so he could see Max. “I think Hunter and I are going to go on ahead if you’re good with that.”
Max nodded. Brody had spent an awful lot of his free time training the young wolves. While none of them had ever been quite like Ava, Max trusted Brody’s ideas. He knew, without even being able to speak telepathically at the moment, that Brody was trying to keep Ava from feeling like she had too much of an audience. “Sounds good. We’ll meet you up near the waterfall.”
Brody and Hunter turned and ran up the path, throwing themselves forward into their wolf forms as they did.
Ava sighed as she stared after them. “I can’t wait to be able to do that.”
“You will, honey.” He said it as an encouragement, but Max also knew he meant it. He’d known Ava for such a short time, yet he could already see what a bright, determined young woman she was. “I know it sounds like this big, difficult thing right now, but it won’t always be. You told me earlier that you were working on your shifting. What have you been able to do so far?”
“Not much,” she admitted with a sheepish smile. “I keep trying, but I usually can’t do more than a little here or there.”
Though Max knew they weren’t, it felt like the two of them were completely alone. Hunter and Brody were up ahead, and several other Glenwoods were spread throughout the woods, walking the paths, watching and listening. Still, as far as Ava was concerned, no one was there to judge her. “Can you show me?”
“Well, okay. But it’s not very good.” Ava flicked her hair back and shook out her arms to loosen them. She was doing just as he’d asked her to do when they’d gone out before, breathing deeply and trying to relax. A twinge of pain moved over her face as a stripe of fur slowly emerged on her forearm.
“Awesome job,” he encouraged calmly. Inside, he was jumping for joy. It was small, but it showed she was adamant about making this happen. “That’s a nice start. Anything else?”
Ava bent her arm across her stomach and held it in her other hand while the fur retreated. “Hunter and I have been talking about it a lot, and he’s been trying to tell me what it’s like. He thought maybe I could guide myself through it mentally, kind of like imagining that I really was doing it, and it might help.”
Max would have to talk to the boy later. That was an impressive observation for such a young man. He was proud of Hunter both for thinking of it and being so genuine about wanting to help his sister. “Do you think it’s helped so far?”
“Yeah. I mean, I couldn’t do the thing with the fur before. I was just able to keep doing what you’d already seen me do with my claws.” She tapped her nails against her thumb.
“Why don’t you see if you can do them at the same time,” he suggested. “Maybe you just need to start adding up small pieces at a time.”
“I don’t know.” Ava’s brows puckered, making a mirror image of the concern he’d seen on Sarah’s face back at the packhouse.
His heart went out to his mate, even though she was probably pissed at him right now. This wasn’t how he wanted any of this to be. He’d change it all if he could. He would’ve followed Sarah out of the house on that fateful night. They would’ve fought, yes, but they would’ve ended up coming back home. Then they’d raise their children together, and he would’ve taught his little girl to shift a long time ago. It would all have been so different, so less stressful, and he had to wonder how Selene could’ve let anyone be so tortured. Max pulled himself back into the moment, wanting to be there for Ava. “Just give it a shot. It’s good practice no matter what happens.”
“All right.”
They were still walking, and Max didn’t suggest that they stop. It looked impressive when someone shifted while on the move, but he knew sometimes it was actually easier than being at a standstill.
Once again, Ava tried to make herself relax. Someday, her wolf would come exploding out of her because of anger or some other strong emotion, but right now, her human was holding it back too tightly. Maybe the silver collar she’d been forced to wear her entire life was responsible for that. She let out a breath and tipped her head back. Nothing happened for a moment, but then he saw the stripe of fur appear on her arm. Good, that was a start. He watched her hand for the claws, but they didn’t extend.
Max was just about to talk her through more techniques when he saw another stripe of fur erupt on her other arm. Then came the claws on one hand, making her cry out in pain, and then on the other hand. Ava stumbled to a halt. Her body convulsed as her bones twisted and changed. Max could feel her pain just as much as he could see it. He hated to watch her go through it, but he knew it was the only way.
“You’re doing great. Just keep going. Let it come on out,” he encouraged, wishing he could take the pain for his baby girl. “You’re almost there, sweetie.”
She let out one last strangled cry before she fell forward onto all fours. Max caught her before she hit the ground completely, holding her up as her tail appeared and her ears sharpened to a point. The golden eyes that looked into his were terrified.
He quickly let go of his human form, knowing he couldn’t help her from two feet right now.You did it, Ava!
It feels so weird!She bent her head and stared at her paws.I’m not sure if I like it.
