Page 51 of Ava: Part One

“Is she okay?” Ezekiel repeated.

Only then did she look up and see the same doctor who had treated her the first time. He looked wary of Ezekiel, rightfully so. Ezekiel seemed unhinged by any standards. And he was very insistent, so he would not leave without an answer. She wanted him to leave. His presence was so overwhelming that she couldn’t think straight.

“Am I okay, doctor?” she asked.

The vampire doctor looked at her as he pulled her chart up.

“Scans showed nothing. Blood tests indicated low iron, and you were very dehydrated, hence the intravenous fluids,” the doctor said. “We gave you a healing potion as soon as you came in, but I guess there wasn’t much damage for it to heal. You’re fine.”

“You guess?” Ezekiel growled.

The doctor shook his head and ignored the wolf as he made some notes on the folder.

“You can go, Miss Morgan. Try not to come back here a third night in a row.”

And then he left the room. When she turned her eyes back to Ezekiel, his claws were digging into the arms of the chair. He didn’t look as in control as he had earlier. Then she noticed the wounds around his arms—angry-looking, bleeding welts and deep grooves that didn’t look like they were healing. They had to have been caused by silver. When she inspected the rest of his tense body, she saw his legs were in the same shape. Criss crossed lines across what would probably have been the most perfect skin and the longest, most muscular legs she had ever seen.

And a thick silver shackle on one ankle that would still be hurting him.

Who had done this to him? Had someone been torturing him?

She looked at him in horror and found his gaze back on her. He had regained his control, but his eyes were still red, overwhelming her with the depths of their darkness.

Ezekiel stood, and his presence filled the room. How she hadn’t felt him there to start with was a mystery, but she blamed it on whatever the doctors had given her this time that was making her dizzy. His gaze was so intent on her every little move, as if he were studying her and cataloguing everything.

He walked to the bed, the sound of the chain on the broken shackle echoing loudly in the room. Every nerve in her body told her to run, to hide from this man, but she had nowhere to escape. This beast had her scent and could hunt her down anywhere. Ava couldn’t help flinching when Ezekiel brought his hand to her cheek, but his deep growl made her freeze in place and let him touch her.

Like every other time he had touched her, the contact sent a jolt through her body. She closed her eyes and willed herself not to react.

“Come,” he said gruffly. “I’m taking you home.”

But all she could see now was his girlfriend’s angry eyes as she had tried to break her. All of this shit had to be Ezekiel’s fault. He needed to learn to keep his hands off other women.

She opened her eyes and met the red ones, not even bothering to look away.

“No. Thanks, but I can get there myself.”

“You will do as you’re told.”

She was so tired. Why did she always have to bend backwards for everybody? She was still being hurt even when she followed the rules and kept her head down. Ava looked away from his eyes and pushed the blanket off her body.

“I’ll do no such thing. Go fuck yourself, Ezekiel Michelson.”

Chapter 36

Ava looked ridiculous walking out of the hospital in the oversized clothes the infirmary had provided, with a brooding, angry, red-eyed Alpha behind her. Her fear must have been felt for miles around while her body visibly trembled like a leaf. But she held her head high and walked with as much dignity as she could while holding the waist of the Academy tracksuit bottoms up so they wouldn’t fall to her ankles.

She saw the disapproving glances when she didn’t look down as she passed the higher-ranked wolves. Heard the whispers.The growls. But they all quietened down when they looked behind her.

“Ava!”

Though the anger in his voice increased her fear and anxiety, she carried on walking until she came out of the building. The sun was still setting, so at least she hadn’t been unconscious all night as she had been the other day. Unless she had actually missed an entire day, then that was just seriously messed up.

“Stop!”

What were the consequences of disobeying an Alpha? She faltered a little when she remembered Emily’s warning that they would take her somewhere. But what would they do? They were already allowing other students to beat the crap out of her; whatever punishment they had couldn’t be worse than that.

Without her tablet once again to show her where the hell she was, she looked around to see if she could see any familiar buildings.

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