Ava: Return Home

I settle into the chair beside Phoenix, my soul crushed under the weight of despair. The plane hums to life around us, a mechanical beast ready to whisk me back to the hell I'd escaped. Phoenix barely spares me a glance as he crowds me against the window, effectively trapping me in my seat. Even going to the bathroom will be impossible without him knowing about it.

Selene's whimpers echo in my mind, a mirror of my own anguish. Ava, I'm so sorry. I tried... I'm still trying...

I know, I whisper back, my heart clenching. It's okay. It's not your fault.

No matter how fast she is, a wolf can't outrun a car.

And even if she did—what are we going to do, against the people under Phoenix's control?

Honestly, it's not okay. Nothing about this is okay. I'm being dragged back to the very place I'd fought so hard to escape, and there's not a damn thing I can do about it.