Chapter 9

• “Ava, you’re not answering me. What’s wrong?” Lowan’s voice cut through the haze of my thoughts, his hand resting gently on my arm. His touch, usually a comfort, only made the tension in my chest grow tighter.
• I didn’t look at him. I couldn’t. Not when I was drowning in the weight of everything that was coming. My birthday was tomorrow. The day I had been dreading for weeks, the day that would change everything.
• “I’m fine,” I whispered, but the words were a lie. My heart was racing, and my mind was a storm of questions I couldn’t answer.