TTHE RANCH, THE RANCH!

It can't be. No, there's no way that it's the same place. It can't be the same as the one in the photos!

Images are filling my head of the albums, of sitting on the bed in the spare room. Pictures of women in white and men in suits, photos of children. FUCK!

It can't be the same place. Liam would have said something if he knew me, my family, like that. He wouldn't keep something like that from me. Would he?

I try to remember my time with Liam, our conversations on his life, his family, his Irish family. That thought alone triggering me to recall the script written after almost every group photo, Féile an Mhad. or something. Turning to face Erin, I ask, biting into my bottom lip, "Do you have your phone with you? I don't know where mine is?"

"Yeah," Erin slowly replies, drawing out each letter and reaching over to the side table, grabbing her phone, and unlocking it. "Do you need to make a phone call? Also, yours is over there on the charger. It'll only have a little charge, I only plugged it in just before you woke." Erin points to the far wall where my phone is sitting connected to a cable.

Impatient, I hold out my hand and she passes her mobile to me. Immediately I pull up her browser, typing in Féile an Mhad, then typing in translation and selecting search. I scan the screen, the translation returned is 'the dog festival'. Dog festival?

"What are you looking for?" Erin asks, peering over my shoulder.

Dog festival? Changing direction, I type in the following: 'what is the Irish word for a dog?' The word 'madra' appears on the screen.

That's not right. I try to rearrange the words in English, deciding to type in, 'the festival of the dog', and wait for the response, 'féile an mhadra' coming up on the screen. Still not right. The word was longer.

I follow my gut from the conversation I had with Erin earlier and decide to change the word 'dog' and replace it with the word 'wolf'. Hitting the search bar, the translation 'féile an mhadaidh' displays, causing my heart to stop. That's it, that's the one. FUCK, Festival of the WOLF... WOLF... WOLF... FUCK!

All I can see is red, burning, hot, scolding, blood-curdling RED!

"Ava," Erin whispers, concern lacing her tone and sucking in her cheek, tentatively reaching out to touch my shoulder. "Ava, what does it say?"

Passing her back her phone, I try to calm my breathing as she reads the translation aloud.

"Ava, I don't understand," Pausing, her eyes widening in a mixture of shock and horror, "Ava, your eyes, babe? They, they look yellow."

Breathing heavily, unable to regulate my heart rate, I push my body up off the bed and stalk my way towards the door, flinging it wide open, the solid wood slamming against the plaster wall with a loud bang. Unperturbed by the sound, anger flooding my body, adrenaline pumping through my veins, mind determined and not hesitating, I walk out, Erin hot on my heels.

"Ava, Ava, what are you doing? Where are you going? I don't understand? Talk to me!" She cries, following closely behind me.

Ignoring her panicked voice, I turn down a long wooden hallway, multiple doors on either side and head towards what looks like an open area and hopefully the way out.

THE RANCH, FESTIVAL OF THE WOLF, THE RANCH, FESTIVAL OF THE WOLF! The mantra is playing over and over in my head like a broken record stuck on repeat.

Coming to an open space, I enter the enormous landing with a glass gable roof, moonlight flooding through its frosted panels. Looking directly in front of me, I see an opening to another long hallway and, to my left, a massive double wooden staircase leading to the ground floor.

Turning and not breaking stride, I take the stairs two at a time, bare feet slapping on the wood. Reaching the bottom of the steps, with heat throbbing at my temples, I enter a grand living space, all wood, and stone with a massive fireplace standing 16' at its center. Thick rugs cover polished dark wood floors, and wrapped around the room are several two-story, floor-to-ceiling windows separated by tall wooden beams. Turning, I notice that several people are milling about on leather couches, I think I see Liam in the center, but I ignore his tall figure when he stands up and begins moving towards me.

"Ava!" Erin continues to plead, trying to reach me, grabbing my arm, and failing, as I continue my pace, determined to know, to find out what is pounding at my brain. "Stop Ava, slow down, will you? Tell me what's going on."

"Ava, love, what are you doing down here? What's wrong?" Liam's concerned voice joins Erin's as they both follow me. I don't have time for his bullshit, so I ignore them both and continue my path, searching for a door that will lead me out of this wood and glass fortress.

Eyes darting further left, I manage to spot what looks to be my destination and turn in that direction, the other people in the room beginning to rise from their seats, murmuring in confusion as I continue to ignore everyone and everything around me.

"Ava!" Liam calls again, his voice raised, trying to gain my attention while attempting to grab my arm, but I shrug him off, pushing him away and turning to bolt for the door, several meters ahead of me.

"Ava, what the FUCK is going on?"

Tuning out all their voices, I reach the massive double oak doors and grab hold of the handles, turning and flinging them open.

The cold night air hits me as I run outside and into the mist, frost-covered grass crunching underneath my feet as I continue running until I'm at least several yards away from the building behind me.

When I feel that I've reached the proper distance between myself and the house, I stop and turn on my heel. Liam, Ava, and several others, now standing in front of me. Ignoring them I look up and take in THE RANCH! Oh my God! This is it; this is the same house from the photo albums.

My body swaying, I clench my fists, dizziness taking over, I feel nauseous, my tummy beginning to roll, and I start to feel my connection to Griffin breaking through, my emotions causing his panic to increase, <Doe, what is it?> Breathe, just breathe, door, close the door, sorry Griffin, give me a second, I just need a second.

"Ava, you'll freeze out here," Liam pleads as he finally reaches me, his large hands on my shoulders, a look of concern on his handsome face.

THE RANCH...

THE RANCH...

THE RANCH...

WOLF...

WOLVES... A WHOLE FUCKING CULT...

LIES...

Taking another deep breath, I close my eyes, head pounding as I try to compose myself. I feel a calming sensation coming through the bond, and my heart wrenches a little, knowing that it's him. Allowing Griffin to calm me, I square my shoulders and look at Liam, who's standing right in front of me, squarely in the eyes, and punch him directly in his perfect nose.

"Ava," Erin cries, coming behind me and trying to hold my body still. Having none of it, I push her off and attack, jumping on Liam as he takes my hits, my kicks, my screams, his hands held up in a sign of surrender.

I hear growls coming from the other people standing around us but ignore them as I continue to attack.

I want blood. I want to fucking kill. Why is Liam not fighting back?

SLAP!

Pain ricochets through my cheek, breaking me from my blood lust, "AVA!" Erin yells again, standing directly in front of me, her bare feet, the same as mine, blue from the frost-covered ground. It's almost snowing, it's that bloody cold! "Ava," she pleads again, moving her frozen fingers to my face, tears trailing down her cheeks. "What's going on babe, you're scaring me."

I break, fragmented memories come flooding back.

The Ranch, the celebration, my parents bringing me here when I was 18... My father yelling at someone, my mother crying, trying to shield me, sad steel blue eyes. He was here, he was there, they KNOW him, they...

Erin's arms are around me, holding me up as I crumple. They knew!!

"Babe, what's going on? Talk to me?" Erin implores. I can almost feel her fear, her body shaking with mine. "Ava, please, whatever it is, it's okay, it's going to be okay."

"They lied," I gasp, water clouding my vision, tears streaming as the anger begins to drain away, "they knew, he knew, they all knew."

"Who knew what, babe? Who?"

"All of them, all of them." My father was fighting with the man who used to run Brady's, Liam's father?... Liam was there. They all were there. Griffin!

I can feel him, warmth and comfort coming through the bond in the back of my mind. Griffin has always been my savior.

"Ava, you're not making any sense. Why don't we go inside before we get sick from the cold? Please, babe, for me." Erin begs. She NEVER begs.

Nodding, body numb, I allow my friend to lead me back inside, into the warmth, someone passing her blankets, one to wrap around me and one for her: my friend, my sister, my family.

"Ava," Liam tries again. He must have followed us back inside, a look of regret etched into his dark eyes, his nose trickling blood, and his bottom lip split.

A feral sound erupts from Erin's throat as she snaps. "Back the FUCK OFF LIAM! I don't know what the fuck is going on, but if you so much as breathe in her direction, I will fucking GUT YOU, you hear me?"

Growls come from multiple directions before Liam's voice breaks through. "Stand down," he commands, the noises in the room quieting to a dull grumble.

"Erin, I promise, I won't touch her. I just need to..."

"You don't need to do shit, FUCK Liam, I have no idea what you and the rest of this inbred bunch have done," more growls, "but I swear to GOD, if any of you have hurt her in any way, I will find a way to make you all fucking pay."

Erin turns and leads my shaking form to a large leather sofa positioned in front of the roaring cobblestone fireplace. Placing her body on one of the seats, she pulls me down next to her, tugging my frozen body into her warm chest. Iris.

Why are we wearing identical nightgowns?

"Erin, Ava, I..."

"That's enough, son," a strong feminine voice interrupts, her words, even though gentle, hold a subtle command to them, shifting the mood in the room, "Why don't you take the rest of the lads out for a run and let us women take it from here."