#Chapter 71: Stay

Ava We walked in silence as we made our way back through the blighted wasteland toward the treeline. Every few steps, Chris would glance over his shoulder, as though he couldn’t quite believe the desolation he had just witnessed. I couldn’t blame him. Seeing the aftermath of Ethan’s arrogance like that, laid bare in front of us in all its horrific glory... it was enough to shake even the most staunch unbeliever’s faith in our way of life here. “How could he do something like that?” Chris murmured after a long stretch of silence, his voice slightly muffled behind his respirator mask. “Selling off part of our pack’s land for some human corporation’s greed… All for kids’ toys.” I shook my head wearily. “You know how Ethan is. He never could see past his own selfish desires for wealth and power.” My jaw tightened as flashes of bitter memories from our marriage resurfaced. I wished I had seen it sooner. “The rest of us... the good of our people, our home... it was never