Chapter 136

Ava’s POV

The battlefield was eerily quiet. The enemy wolves had fled, leaving behind the scent of blood and fear. My breath came in sharp gasps, my body still humming with the aftershocks of the power I had unleashed.

Logan’s arms were still around me, steadying me, but I could feel the tension in his muscles. My mates—Liam, Lucas, and Landon—stood in a protective circle, their gazes locked onto me with something new in their eyes.

Awe.

Fear.

And something deeper, something I wasn’t sure I was ready to face.

“Ava…” Lucas whispered, stepping closer. “What was that?”

I shook my head. “I—I don’t know.”

The power that had erupted from me moments ago now felt like embers beneath my skin, still warm but no longer raging. But it had been real. It had changed everything.

Logan’s grip on me tightened, his voice low and controlled. “Are you hurt?”

“No,” I murmured. “Just… tired.”

Landon was silent, his sharp eyes scanning me like he was trying to figure out a puzzle. Liam, ever the peacemaker, ran a hand through his bloodied hair and sighed.

“Well, that was unexpected,” he said, forcing a smirk, but his voice was tight with barely contained emotion. “You really know how to keep things interesting, Ava.”

I gave a weak laugh, but inside, I was unraveling.

What was I?

Why had I never felt this power before?

And most importantly—what did this mean for me and my mates?

Before I could spiral further, movement from the packhouse caught my attention. Wolves from our pack were emerging cautiously, their eyes flickering between me and the bodies strewn across the battlefield.

Then, one by one, they knelt.

My breath caught.

“What—” I turned to Logan, panic rising in my chest. “Why are they doing that?”

He exhaled slowly. “They’re acknowledging you, Ava.”

Liam grinned. “They’re submitting to you.”

My heart pounded. “No, that’s not—I’m not—”

Landon finally spoke, his voice unreadable. “You’re not just an omega, Ava. You never were.”

I wanted to protest, to tell them they were wrong, but deep down, something inside me knew the truth.

I had never been just an omega.

And now, the entire pack knew it too.

Silence stretched over the battlefield as the pack remained kneeling, their heads bowed in submission. The weight of their stares, of their unspoken expectations, pressed down on me like an anchor.

I wasn’t just an omega anymore.

I wasn’t even just their Alpha’s mate.

I was something more—something powerful.

Liam stepped closer, his fingers brushing against my wrist. “Ava, say something.” His voice was soft, coaxing, as if he could sense the storm raging inside me.

I opened my mouth, but nothing came out. What was I supposed to say? That I didn’t understand this power? That I was just as lost as they were? That I had no idea what I had become?

Landon, always sharp-eyed and unreadable, studied me carefully. “They’re waiting for you to accept it,” he murmured.

Lucas crossed his arms, his voice firm but laced with something I couldn’t quite name. “And if you don’t, Ava, someone else will try to take what’s rightfully yours.”

A shiver ran down my spine.

Rightfully mine.

Logan’s voice was the one that finally cut through the fog. “You don’t have to figure it all out right now, but we need to get inside. You’re exhausted.” His hand rested on the small of my back, grounding me.

I turned back to the pack, my chest tightening.

They were waiting.

And even though I felt like I was standing on the edge of a cliff, staring into the unknown, I couldn’t back down.

So I straightened my spine, lifted my chin, and did the only thing I could.

“Let’s go home.”

Back at the packhouse, the atmosphere was tense. Wolves murmured among themselves, stealing glances at me when they thought I wasn’t looking.

Logan had led me to the war room, where only the strongest of our warriors and our pack’s council gathered. My mates were there too, each of them radiating an intensity that made my pulse quicken.

“We need answers,” one of the elders said. “Ava’s power—it’s unlike anything we’ve seen.”

“I don’t even know what it is,” I admitted, running a hand through my tangled hair.

Logan leaned forward, his voice a deep rumble. “But it saved us.”

Liam smirked. “Not just saved us. It destroyed them.”

I shuddered at the memory. The enemy pack had been obliterated. Not just defeated—annihilated.

Lucas met my gaze, his expression unreadable. “We need to figure out how to control it.”

A lump formed in my throat. What if I couldn’t?

What if this power wasn’t just a gift, but a curse?

Landon, always the most logical, spoke up. “There has to be a reason why it awakened now.”

Logan nodded. “And we’ll find out.” His eyes locked onto mine, unwavering. “Together.”

Something in me eased at the certainty in his voice.

No matter what came next, I wouldn’t face it alone.

And somehow, that made all the difference.