Chapter 158 Ava Was Waiting for Me

Chapter 158 Ava Was Waiting for Me
Rowan's POV

The world shattered in slow motion.

I watched in absolute horror as Ava's body fell, her hair catching the gray afternoon light one last time before she disappeared from view.

My legs moved before my mind could process what had happened, carrying me to the edge of the roof.

"NO!" The scream tore from my throat, raw and desperate.

Below, her broken body lay motionless in a growing pool of crimson. The impact had been... I couldn't think about it. I couldn't breathe.

"Holy shit, she actually jumped!" someone behind me gasped.

"I thought she was just putting on a show," another voice said. "Didn't think she'd really do it."

Their casual cruelty slammed into me like a sledgehammer to the chest. I whirled around, my Alpha fury detonating like a nuclear bomb inside me.

"SHUT UP!" I roared, shoving past the clustered reporters and gawkers. "GET AWAY FROM HERE!"

I ran. Down the stairs, my legs shaking, my vision blurred with tears I couldn't stop. The elevator would have been faster, but I needed to move, needed to do something, anything to get to her.

The pack hospital entrance was chaos. Security was trying to control the crowd that had gathered, phones held high, recording my Ava's final moments for their sick entertainment. I pushed through them all, not caring who I hurt.

And then I saw her.

The image will haunt me for the rest of my life – however long that might be. Ava lay there, so small and broken, her beautiful face peaceful despite the blood. Her hair was fanned out like a halo around her head. She looked like a fallen angel.

I dropped to my knees beside her, my hands hovering over her body, afraid to touch her, afraid to make it real.

"Ava," I whispered, my voice cracking. "Ava, please..."

The memories crashed over me – our quiet mornings in the little apartment, her laugh when I brought her coffee in bed, the way she'd curl up against me during thunderstorms.

We'd been so happy after leaving the Sterling Pack. I hadn't taken a single dollar from them. We'd started fresh, built our own life.

But the internet... Moon God, the things they'd said about her. Called her a homewrecker, said she was carrying a bastard child. The cruelty had been relentless.

"I'm sorry," I sobbed, finally reaching out to stroke her cheek. "I'm so sorry I couldn't protect you from them."

I pulled her into my arms, her body still warm but so terrifyingly still. "You're not leaving me," I cried. "I love you. Do you hear me? I love you so much."

Around us, I heard whispers, sneers, the click of camera phones. I didn't care anymore. All I wanted was to treasure what little time I had left with her.

"Look at him crying over his whore," someone muttered.

I didn't even turn to see who'd spoken. Nothing they said could hurt me more than this.

"Rowan!"

Marcus's voice cut through the noise. I looked up to see him running toward us, followed by Cecilia, Victor, and... Aria. My family.

Cecilia took one look at the scene and her face went pale. "We need to get her to the Pack hospital," she said quietly, her usual venom replaced by something that might have been pity.

I nodded frantically. Maybe... maybe there was still a chance. "Yes," I whispered. "Please."

Within minutes, Pack healers arrived. I watched them work with professional efficiency, lifting Ava's broken body onto a stretcher. I tried to follow, but my legs gave out. Marcus caught my arm, steadying me.

"I've got you," he said softly.

The emergency room of our Pack hospital was a blur of activity. I sat in a plastic chair that squeaked every time I moved, staring at the doors where they'd taken Ava. Aria was in there, working alongside the other healers. If anyone could save her, it would be Aria.

My family sat around me in uncomfortable silence. Cecilia's eyes were red-rimmed, Victor looked sick, and Marcus kept running his hands through his hair.

Hours passed. Or maybe it was minutes. Time had no meaning anymore.

Finally, the doors opened. Aria emerged first, followed by the other healers. They were pushing a gurney, and there was a white sheet pulled up over...

"No," I breathed, standing on unsteady legs. "No, no, no..."

Aria's eyes met mine, and I saw the answer there. The confirmation that my world had ended.

I collapsed back into the chair and wept. Great, heaving sobs that came from the deepest part of my soul. Ava was gone. My Ava was gone.

"I'm sorry for your loss," Aria said gently, but I could barely hear her over the roaring in my ears.

Somewhere behind us, camera flashes went off. More reporters had found their way into the hospital.

"Get them out of here," Marcus growled, and suddenly the hallway filled with his security team, forming a protective barrier around us.

When I finally stopped crying – when I had no tears left – I asked to see her one more time. They wheeled her to the morgue, and I followed like a ghost.

In that cold, sterile room, I pulled back the sheet and looked at her face. Somehow, death had given her peace. The worry lines that had appeared in recent weeks were gone. She looked young again, like the woman I'd first fallen in love with.

"I'm coming," I whispered, leaning down to kiss her forehead. "Wait for me, my love. I'll find you."

And so I watched Ava for a long time, tears streaming down my face.

"Rowan?"

I turned to find Aria standing in the doorway, holding a folded piece of paper. "I found this in her room," she said softly. "I think... I think she meant for you to have it."

My hands shook as I took the note and unfolded it. Ava's careful handwriting filled the page, and with each word, my heart broke all over again.

Thank you for giving me love...

She'd known. She'd known how much I loved her, and she'd loved me too. My brave, beautiful, broken girl.

I pressed the letter to my chest, feeling the paper crinkle against my shirt. After a long moment, I handed it to Cecilia, who was standing nearby with confusion in her eyes.

"Read it," I said simply.

I didn't wait to see her reaction. I had somewhere to be, and someone to find. Ava was waiting for me, and I'd kept her waiting long enough.

As I walked away, I heard the sound of crying behind me. But I didn't look back. There was nothing left for me here.